Tata Steel Ltd said on Thursday it has signed a definitive pact to sell its UK speciality steel business to Liberty House Group for £100 million ($125.6 million or Rs 838 crore).
The deal is an important step forward in securing a future for the business under new ownership, Tata Steel UK CEO Bimlendra Jha said in a statement.
The speciality steel business is based largely in South Yorkshire and has service centres in the West Midlands and Lancashire as well as in China. It employs about 1,700 workers and makes high-value speciality steel products for the automotive, oil and gas, and aerospace sectors.
The deal is subject to regulatory approvals, the company said.
Tata Steel and Liberty House had entered into negotiations for the speciality steel business in November last year.
Tata Steel said it has invested £1.5 billion in its UK steel business since acquiring Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus in 2007.
Tata Steel had put its entire UK business on the block in March last year, as it started the process to exit its loss-making European operations. The same month, Tata Steel sold the Clydebridge and Dalzell Steel Plants of Tata Steel Europe Ltd to the Scottish government. The mills were subsequently acquired by Liberty House. In April last year, Tata Steel agreed to sell its European long products business to investment firm Greybull Capital.
Liberty House makes and distributes steel products and specialises in metal trading, and has revenue of $4.3 billion.
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