‘Huge majority’ oppose Mittal Steel bid – Arcelor

CHICAGO – The senior management of steel group Arcelor has discussed the unsolicited bid from Mittal Steel with 50 per cent of Arcelor shareholders and a “huge majority” of them oppose the offer, the company’s top executive said on Monday.

“With (the) offer as it stands today, they (Mittal Steel) will not succeed,” Arcelor Chief Executive Guy Dolle told journalists at a briefing in Chicago. “Our shareholders are not pleased by this bid.”Dolle was in town to give a keynote speech at the Annual Steel Markets North America conference and talk to investors about Mittal’s cash-and-stock bid for Arcelor, currently valued at US$23,6 billion (N$146,32 billion).Within two weeks, Arcelor’s senior management will have spoken to more than 80 per cent of company shareholders about the Mittal bid, Dolle said.Dolle claimed that part of the problem is that Mittal Steel, the world’s biggest steel group, has not come up with any concrete plan since it announced its bid on January 27 for what it would do with Arcelor after acquiring it.”We have prepared a three-year plan to some of our most important investors and they like it,” Dolle said.”It’s strange that there is no plan (from Mittal) after six weeks.”Dolle also said that shareholders found a cash-and-stock deal difficult to ascertain, whereas a “cash offer would be easier.”In response to questioning, Dolle said Arcelor does not have a poison pill in place to prevent a takeover, nor will it rely on any government intervention in Europe to prevent it.”The most important people here are the shareholders and we consider this a bad offer for our shareholders,” Dolle said.- Nampa-Reuters”Our shareholders are not pleased by this bid.”Dolle was in town to give a keynote speech at the Annual Steel Markets North America conference and talk to investors about Mittal’s cash-and-stock bid for Arcelor, currently valued at US$23,6 billion (N$146,32 billion).Within two weeks, Arcelor’s senior management will have spoken to more than 80 per cent of company shareholders about the Mittal bid, Dolle said.Dolle claimed that part of the problem is that Mittal Steel, the world’s biggest steel group, has not come up with any concrete plan since it announced its bid on January 27 for what it would do with Arcelor after acquiring it.”We have prepared a three-year plan to some of our most important investors and they like it,” Dolle said.”It’s strange that there is no plan (from Mittal) after six weeks.”Dolle also said that shareholders found a cash-and-stock deal difficult to ascertain, whereas a “cash offer would be easier.”In response to questioning, Dolle said Arcelor does not have a poison pill in place to prevent a takeover, nor will it rely on any government intervention in Europe to prevent it.”The most important people here are the shareholders and we consider this a bad offer for our shareholders,” Dolle said.- Nampa-Reuters