Nippon ‘raises bid for US Steel’

Nippon Steel plans to invest $14 billion in US Steel's operations, including up to $4 billion in a new steel mill, if the Trump administration green lights its bid for the iconic US company, according to a document and three people familiar with the matter.

- ALEXANDRA ALPER JARRETT RENSHAW

Under details of the plan included in the document, the company would plow $11 billion into US Steel's infrastructure through 2028. That includes $1 billion in a green field site, which is expected to grow by $3 billion over the following years and has not been previously reported. The total investment figure was previously reported by CTFN.

Shares of US Steel rose closed up more than 3% after the Reuters report.

The super-charged investment pledge, up from an initial $1.4 billion, was pitched as part of a last ditch effort to win approval of the merger, which has drawn fire from both presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

The companies face a May 21 deadline for the completion of a fresh national security review of their proposed tie-up, which was blocked by Mr Biden on national security grounds in January following a prior review. Trump would then have 15 days to decide the fate of the transaction, although the timeline could slip.