Steel entrepreneur Sanjeev Gupta said he would look to acquire Port Talbot steelworks if the business was put up for sale.
It comes as Indian-owned Tata Steel 海角视频 continues discussions over a bespoke loan, understood to be in the region of £500m, with the 海角视频 Treasury to support its loss-making operation in the 海角视频, where it employs 7,000 in Wales and 4,000 at its primary steelmaking plant in Port Talbot.
After weeks of negotiations with the Treasury, Catalan-owned recycled steel business Celsa Steel 海角视频, which employs 800 in south Wales with the majority at its mill in Cardiff, on Thursday secured a repayable of loan of £30m.
As part of the 海角视频 Government funding, which is expected to be repaid in full, the company must meet a series of legally-binding conditions.
These include net zero targets, improved corporate governance, such as restraints on executive pay and bonuses, and tax obligations. It has also required further financial commitments from shareholders and existing lenders.
It is the first funding deal of its type with a major employer in the 海角视频 deemed of national strategic importance and unable to access the Government’s mainstream Covid-19 loans schemes.
The funding secures more than 1,000 Celsa jobs across the 海角视频. It has also secured additional private funding. Alongside the 海角视频 Government, the Welsh Government has provided Celsa with a £2.9m loan and non-repayable finance of £690,000 from its Economic Resilience Fund.
For Tata, it is a clear indication that the 海角视频 and Welsh governments view steel as an industry of national strategic importance.
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As well as its Port Talbot plant, its downstream businesses include those at Trostre, Caerphilly, Llanwern and Shotton.
Tata said in a statement: “We have been, and continue to, seek government support in the 海角视频, the Netherlands and all geographies we operate in. It would not be appropriate to comment on ongoing discussions with governments.”
Welsh Secretary Simon Hart said: “There’s a lot of negotiations to be done around a lot of conditions with any company. It is about viability and what the situation was before Covid and, as far as we can all tell, what the situation is going to be after Covid. It’s not a straightforward situation.
“Tata, a big complicated company, it has a big complicated history in Port Talbot and other places. It’s going to rumble on for a bit, but the ambition from both the point of view of Tata and the 海角视频 Government is that we are going to try every possible means of seeing how we are going to secure a sustainable future.”
In an interview with Moneycontrol, steel magnate Mr Gupta, who is executive chairman of Liberty Steel Group, said he would consider an acquisition if the Port Talbot steelworks was brought to market.
Liberty Steel, part of the GFG Alliance owned by the Gupta family, was one of a number of bidders for Tata’s 海角视频 steel business back in 2016, before the sales process was abandoned.
Tata then pursued a joint venture of its European steel business with German conglomerate Thyssenkrupp, before that was dissolved last year.
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Mr Gupta, who lives in Monmouthshire, said of the Tata’s 海角视频 business: “If we are offered, we are ready to look at it. We have a strong relationship with the Tata Group and are ready to explore any kind of partnership with them. The question is of Tata’s drive. I am always ready.”
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Liberty Steel’s Newport steel operation has recruited leading equipment-provider Danieli to develop its longer-term plans for a “greensteel” hub, where the business already owns and operates a hot-rolled coil mill. The Liberty Steel Newport hub would see investment in Danieli’s latest electric arc furnace technology and other site upgrades to create a cast strip plant capable of producing up to two million tonnes per annum of thin-gauge hot-rolled coil for the 海角视频 market.
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