Private holding company and former owner of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp., Esmark Inc. announced Monday that it has acquired Amtex Steel Inc., an Illinois-based steel service center specializing in processing and distributing flat rolled and bar products for light manufacturing and durable goods.
The company will be renamed Chicago Steel and Iron and will become a wholly owned subsidiary of the Esmark Steel Group, Esmark Inc.'s steel arm. Esmark said it will retain Amtex's more than 70 employees and plans to expand the workforce in commercial sales and plant staff as part of a plan to rapidly increase shipment volumes within the next year.
Thomas Modrowski, chief executive of the Esmark Steel Group, said the company plans to have revenues of $250 million by the end of 2010 and will be pursuing more service center acquisitions on a cash basis without carrying debt.
Esmark Inc. sold Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp. and its other steel assets it held at the time, including several steel service centers, to Russia's OAO Severstal in August 2008 for about $775 million. Esmark's acquisition of Amtex represents its first foray back into the steel business since selling its steel assets to Severstal. Esmark currently has holdings in oil and gas exploration, aviation, real estate, technology and other sectors.