Sir Bamford saddened by Tata deal
Sir Anthony's remarks could increase the pressure on Tata and Corus to step up their efforts to persuade shareholders .
By PTI |
LONDON: Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus' decision to accept a 4.3 billion pound takeover offer from Tata Steel has come under fire from one of Britain's top industrialists, who is also one of the customers of the UK-based company.
Sir Anthony Bamford, chairman of the earth-moving equipment maker JCB, said that he was "saddened and disappointed" that the Corus board had decided to recommend an offer from Tata rather than assume a leading role in the consolidation of the global steel industry.
"In my view, Corus should be using its strong profitability to grow the business by buying smaller steelmakers in India, Brazil or elsewhere. Why isn't it more ambitious," he wrote in the Financial Times.
The Tata-Corus deal, if approved by shareholders of the Anglo-Dutch firm, would make the combination the world's fifth largest steelmaker with an annual capacity of well over 20 million tonnes. Corus happens to be the much the larger of the two, producing more than 18 MT against Tata's five MT.
Sir Anthony's remarks could increase the pressure on Tata and Corus to step up their efforts to persuade shareholders to back the deal. Besides buying 330,000 tonnes of steel from Corus, JCB also holds over 2 per cent of the shares in the company.
Standard Life, which holds about 8 per cent stake in Corus, has already said it does not believe Tata's 455 pence (nearly Rs 161) a share cash offer adequately reflects the benefits of merging Corus's technology and European presence with Tata's access to low-cost production, raw materials and the Asian market.
The deal needs the backing of holders of 75 per cent of Corus shares.
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