Tata Steel is considering retaining UK business

Tata Steel is considering keeping its UK business, raising hopes that the Port Talbot steelworks and 11,000 jobs can be saved. Sajid Javid, the business secretary, held talks with Tata Steel in Mumbai before of the Company’s board meeting. He is thought to have asked it to keeping the business. At a press conference, after the board meeting, Koushik Chatterjee, executive director of Tata Steel, said the company was still evaluating offers for the UK business. Chatterjee said, “We are running a credible process, working with the government. Each step has been done with a careful consideration. We need to consider these bids, who needs what, and how, and understand the implications for Tata.” When asked at the press conference about keeping Tata Steel UK, Chatterjee did not rule it out and said the management team were still, “looking at continuing and sustaining the business.” But he added: “I don’t think we have a case as yet.” Javid has said the government is willing to offer hundreds of millions of pounds to a buyer of Tata Steel UK and is also looking to restructure the pension scheme, which has liabilities of almost 15 billion pounds and costs more than a 100 million pounds to support. This package could also be available to Tata Steel, although it is not clear whether they would take up the government’s offer of a 25% stake in the business.