Arcelor raises stake in Morocco's Sonasid

London, June 1 (UNI) Arcelor, the world's second largest steelmaker, currently in the throes of bid talks since Mittal Steel made its offer, today raised its stake in Morocco's Sonasid in a deal that values Sonasid at 5.265 billion Moroccan dirhams (612 million dollars).

''It will enable Arcelor to strengthen its positions on markets with high growth potential,'' Arcelor Senior Executive Vice President Roland Junck said in a statement.

Arcelor said it had, together with a group of investors, transferred its stake in Sonasid to an ad hoc holding company at a price of 1,350 Moroccan dirhams (157 dollars) per Sonasid share.

A spokesman for Arcelor said Sonasid's total equity represented 3.9 million shares. However, he did not reveal how much Arcelor held before it raised its stake in the company or how much it now held directly.

Arcelor also said it had subscribed to a reserved capital increase in cash that gave it 50 per cent of the holding company which in turn now owned 64.86 per cent of Sonasid.

Arcelor added in a statement that the holding company would make a public tender offer for the purchase of all remaining Sonasid shares on the same terms applied to the transfer of its shares to the ad hoc committee.

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