Turkish Holding Wants to Buy UK's Second Largest Steelmaker

Turkey's Ataer Holding is the most likely buyer of Britain's second largest steelmaker, British Steel, which went bankrupt in May this year, according to British media.

The holding, which is a subsidiary of Turkey's Oyak state military pension scheme, confirmed strong interest in the deal, announcing today that it is in the "exclusive" talks to acquire British Steel. The deal is valued at between £ 60m and £ 70m.

Ataer Holding already owns a 49.3% stake in Turkey's largest steelmaker Erdemir.

British Steel went bankrupt after failing to receive a £ 30m financial injection from the UK government.