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ROTTERDAM, Mar 9 (Reuters) Mittal Steel would keep the stainless steel activities of Arcelor if its proposed takeover bid succeeded, the group said in a presentation to investors in Rotterdam on Thursday.

Chairman Lakshmi Mittal told reporters that the group was in talks with regulators and expected to be able to post the official offer documents in a couple of weeks.

The company will also have more talks with governments next week after meeting with the Belgian prime minister and other officials this week.

Luxembourg-based Arcelor, which has rejected Mittal's bid approach, has announced a strategic review of its stainless steel activities which could range from a sale to a spin-off or an initial public offering.

''Mittal Steel would hold off on examining strategic options on the stainless steel business given its turnaround expertise and potential,'' Mittal said in slides posted on its Web site.

It said that because of the leverage of global skills and through ''knowledge transfer and change management processes'' it should be able to improve the performance of the stainless steel division.

During the presentations, Mittal reiterated that steel industry consolidation was accelerating and that global groups needed to be created, with the Mittal/Arcelor combination having the potential of becoming a sector leader.

Mittal said it saw $1.0 billion in annual cost synergies ''with minimal implementation costs'' by year three after the merger, from purchasing, marketing and trading and manufacturing and process optimisation.

Further synergy potential was not yet quantified, it added.

Mittal said it promised an efficient capital structure and the return of excess cash to shareholders, as well as a 25 percent dividend payout ratio over the industrial cycle.

It said it had unparalleled financial flexibility to pursue internal and external growth opportunities and had a commitment to an investment-grade credit rating while it aimed to maintain high returns on capital.

Mittal's share-and-cash bid proposal for Arcelor currently values the target at 29.67 euros per share, or 18.9 billion euros ($22.56 billion) in total, while Arcelor stock trades 6 percent above that level at 31.59 euros.

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