According to Venezuela's finance minister Ali Rodriguez, Venezuela officially concluded the nationalization of Siderúrgica del Orinoco (Sidor) this Wednesday, settling on a compensation agreement with Argentine firm Techint for most or all of its stake in the company.
"We have agreed on a payment system for Sidor. Yes, the business deal is closed. A part of it has been paid. The important thing is that an agreement has been reached and we are on a payment process," Mr. Rodriguez explained.
Nevertheless, a Venezuelan local news agency reported that sources close to Sidor denied the news. Moreover, Techint, which is officially obliged to report the business transaction to the New York Stock Exchange, has not done so.
There are rumors that the closing price was of US$1.65 billion for 50 percent of the company's assets, leaving Techint as a minority shareholder with a 10 percent stake in Sidor. However, this has not been confirmed. Initially, when Venezuela's president Hugo Chávez first announced he would nationalize Sidor, he offered "US$800 million or expropriation," but Techint considered it an insufficient offer.
Ternium-Sidor, the largest steel producer in the Andes and the Caribbean zones, produced 4.3 million metric tons of liquid steel back in 2007. In April of 2008, Venezuela announced its plans to take over the steelmaker, and finally in May 2008 the nationalization took place. Before that, Techint controlled 60 percent of the firm's assets while the Venezuelan State and the company's workers owned the remaining 40 percent.
Venezuela, Techint may have reached agreement for Sidor
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