U.S. Steel may bid for Czech mill Nova Hut
The Czech Republic's integrated steel mill, Nova Hut is up for sale and it is expected that U.S. Steel will probably make a preliminary offer for the company within the next few weeks. LNM was the first to put in a bid with exclusive rights to purchase the mill before a specific deadline this month. Toward the end of April, LNM began the bid process and had submitted proposals related to running the Czech steel industry overall. Officials indicated that if the Czech government finds LNM's restructuring plans incomplete that it would bring in other bids. Nova Hut has plans to integrate its operations with those of Czech's pig iron producer, Vysoke pece Ostrava (VPO). Nova Hut owns a 66% stake in that firm. A timeframe has not yet been fixed for the merger. At the beginning of April, Nova Hut approved a financial restructuring plan for the firm which is now under discussion with the Ministry of Trade and Industry. The new strategy will create three strategic divisions at Nova Hut: Bands, Tubes and Longs.