Indian steel giant Tata Steel said today that it did not have plans to sell its stake in its UK-based Teeside Cast Plant to Italy's Marcegaglia and South Korea's Dongkuk after a consortium including both of the companies cancelled a contract to buy the plant's products.
J.J. Irani, director of the group's holding company Tata Sons, told reporters at a steel conference, "Operations are on just now at Teeside as before. There is no question of selling the plant to them now."
As SteelOrbis previously reported, Tata Steel said on May 12 that its UK-based subsidiary Corus may have to indefinitely suspend operations at its Teesside Cast Plant, after the major supply contract was cancelled by the consortium.
In January, Marcegaglia and Dongkuk agreed to buy an 80 percent stake in the Teeside Cast Plant, valuing it at an estimated $600 million.
Meanwhile, Mr. Irani stated that he expected hot rolled coil prices to stabilize at $375-400/mt, and Indian steel demand to rise by 5-8 percent this year despite a fall in global demand.
"In China, hot rolled coil prices have been in the same range for almost a year. I think China is a great influence on the international market," Mr. Irani added.