Germany's Thyssenkrupp and India's Tata Steel have agreed to a 50:50 joint venture (JV) between their European steel businesses, creating a company with combined sales of €17bn ($20bn) and 14% of the European market for crude steel production, estimated by Moody's. The deal is expected to be finalised in early 2014 after which it will become part of the group's global network. The firms have already started informal talks with European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager and Tata Steel Europe's initiation of an asset disposal programme ahead of the deal is also noted.
Germany's Thyssenkrupp and India's Tata Steel have agreed to a 50:50 joint venture (JV) between their European steel businesses, creating a company with combined sales of €17bn ($20bn) and 14% of the European market for crude steel production, estimated by Moody's. Downstream niche products, like packaging steel—tinplate—however, where the combined company would have a 50% market share, could be subject to an asset sale, according to industry observers. The firms have already started informal talks with European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager and Tata Steel Europe's initiation of an asset disposal programme ahead of the deal is also noted.