A rescue deal for British Steel has edged closer after bidder Jingye received support from regional authorities in China to push through the takeover of the ailing UK steelmaker, reported the Financial Times.
The 5,000 workers at the stricken company have been facing an uncertain future after it collapsed into liquidation in May when its owner, the buyout group Greybull Capital, failed to obtain an emergency loan from the UK government.
An attempt to sell the group to Ataer Holding, an investment arm of Turkey’s military pension fund, fell through after 10 weeks of exclusive talks. Jingye emerged in the autumn with a £50 million ($65 million) rescue deal to save the UK’s second-largest steelmaker.
The conglomerate, which is chaired by businessman and former Chinese Communist party official Li Ganpo, has put forward plans to invest £1.2 billion in British Steel and ramp up production by cutting costs.
