Esmark wants proxy fight with Wheeling-Pittsburgh

Steel distributor Esmark Ink plans to announce that it is starting a proxy fight with steelmaker Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corp, followed by an offer to merge the two companies. Chicago-based Esmark will offer six to 11 directors to replace current directors at Wheeling-Pitt's annual meeting in August. If successful, Esmark would then combine with Wheeling-Pitt, leaving Esmark the publicly traded remaining entity. Wheeling-Pitt entered Chapter 11 protection in 2000, emerging in 2003. Esmark, led by brothers James and Craig Bouchard, believe that Wheeling-Pitt cannot be successful on its own, as it is not bringing in as much profit as its steelmaking peers and is suffering from high raw material costs.