Listed steel company seeks $1B to build integrated plant

N. J. C. Morales
BusinessWorld

TKC STEEL Corp., the only publicly listed steel company in the country, has appointed a global financial adviser to help secure as much as $1 billion in fresh financing to put up an integrated steel plant.


“Under the terms of engagement, Pricewaterhouse Coopers Financial Advisors, Inc. will identify prospective strategic partners and or investors and prepare a work program and fund-generation activities,” TKC Steel said in a disclosure to the stock exchange yesterday.

Pricewaterhouse Coopers Financial Advisors will also assist in acquiring an offshore or onshore mining investment to obtain iron ore to be used as raw material for the blast furnace project of subsidiary Treasure Steelworks Corp. in Iligan.

TKC Steel reported a loss of P319.81 million for the first half of last year, a reversal of the profit of P282.59 million during the same period in 2008 as sales were cut by more than three-fifths to P1.03 billion.

The integrated steel mill plan aims to provide the investment environment for further expansion of the steel manufacturing and the mining industry sectors, TKC Steel told the bourse. Read more...