Indian-owned steelmaker Corus said on Friday it is in talks to sell its Teesside Cast Products (TCP) unit to Thailand’s SSI for some $500 million.
TCP is based in northeast England and was closed at the beginning of the year after Corus failed to find a buyer for the steel products business, although it continues to employ 700 workers at the site.
If concluded, the deal "is expected to create a significant number of new jobs at the plant in addition to TCP’s existing workforce of over 700 and will provide a considerable boost to the local economy," a statement said.
Sahaviriya Steel Industries is Thailand's largest steel producer. Corus is owned by Tata Steel, part of India's sprawling Tata Group conglomerate, which bought the Anglo-Dutch company for $13.7 billion.