Mittal says focused on acquiring 51 pc of Arcelor

LONDON, May 30: Mittal Steel said on Tuesday it remained focused on acquiring 51 percent in Arcelor despite plans by the Luxembourg-based group to merge with Russia's Severstal.

''We remain focused on gaining 51 percent of Arcelor and are confident of doing so given the substantial 70 percent premium we are offering to Arcelor shareholders,'' a Mittal spokesman told Reuters.

''Should we gain less than 50 percent, we would evaluate our options at that time,'' said the spokesman, adding that a company statement would be issued later.

Roeland Baan, the chief executive for Europe at Mittal Steel, told the Financial Times Deutschland in an interview that the world's biggest steel group by volume had no plans to further raise its offer for Arcelor but could end up with a significant stake after its offer expires.

REUTERS

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