German steelmaker
ThyssenKrupp has announced that it is selling its high-performance alloy unit VDM group to the
US-based private equity firm Lindsay Goldberg. The purchase price has not been disclosed. Completion of the sale is subject to the approval of the supervisory boards and the competent antitrust authorities. On completion of the transaction,
ThyssenKrupp will achieve a positive effect on net financial debt.
As part of the necessary refinancing measures at Outokumpu, all shares in VDM and Italy-based steel plant Acciai Speciali Terni (AST) were transferred to
ThyssenKrupp at the end of February 2014. Comprehensive new business plans have been developed for VDM and AST over the past few months. However,
ThyssenKrupp always emphasized that it did not intend to retain the two companies in the medium to long term.