The US Justice Department has granted Mittal Steel Co. an additional two and a half weeks to find a buyer for its Sparrows Point mill.
After Mittal's third and supposedly final extension to find a buyer for Sparrows Point expired Friday, a US District Court judge granted the steelmaker another deadline extension. Mittal now has until August 6 to name a buyer.
Mittal said in a motion filed last week to the US District Court in Washington that it is in the final stages of contract negotiations with several prospective buyers, though the negotiations are "unusually complex."
The company has not divulged the names of the potential buyers, but both Esmark and Companhia Siderurgica Nacional of Brazil have acknowledged that they have submitted bids.
Sparrows Point needs to be sold to alleviate antitrust concerns regarding Mittal Steel Co.'s merger with Arcelor. The original date Mittal was ordered to sell Sparrows Point by was May 21, 2007.