Swiss-based special steel producer and distributor Schmolz+Bickenbach has announced that it has submitted an offer for a takeover of the French assets of Belgium-headquartered specialty steel producer Asco Industries.
According to Schmolz+Bickenbach’s statement, its interest in the acquisition of Asco Industries' French assets is in accordance with its strategy to play an active role in the consolidation of the European special long steel industry. With a workforce of roughly 1,500 employees, Asco Industries achieved overall revenues of €500 million in 2015. The company stated that a successful acquisition would create one of the leading European companies in high-value long steel products. The strategic rationale of the offer is a strong fit of Asco Industries' French assets and the plants of Schmolz+Bickenbach Group, which would result in a more efficient production strategy and therefore increase the utilization rates of each plant.
Schmolz+Bickenbach added that any potential transaction is still subject to several conditions and there is no guarantee that a submission of an offer will ultimately lead to a transaction.