According to a source with knowledge of the bankruptcy proceedings, several companies have bid on bankrupt RG Steel's Sparrows Point mill.
According to a source, US steel firm Nucor Corporation, Ukrainian mining and metallurgy company Metinvest Group and Brazilian steel giant CSN are among potential bidders on the Baltimore County steelmaking site.
RG Steel, which filed for bankruptcy protection at the end of May 2012, must choose by July 30th 2012 an initial bidder from the parties that have shown interest. An auction for the property will take place no later than August 21st 2012.
Mr Michael Locker, a New York steel industry consultant, said that he was surprised by the report of Nucor's interest. He added that "Nucor doesn't buy unionized facilities."
Mr Locker said that also, because Nucor is a major domestic steel producer, antitrust problems could arise if the company bought Sparrows Point.
But, Mr Locker said that the North Carolina based company has the money to buy and operate Sparrows Point and a Mid Atlantic port would be useful for the firm.
CSN's reported bid is not surprising. The company showed interest in Sparrows Point five years ago, when the mill's owner was forced by the US Justice Department to sell the property as part of an antitrust settlement.
Mr Locker said that like CSN, Metinvest is also a major player in the international steel market, with access to the raw materials required to run a mill like Sparrows Point.
Neither RG Steel nor the three prospective bidders responded to requests for comment. The federal trustee overseeing RG Steel's bankruptcy referred inquiries about bids to RG Steel's counsel, who did not respond to a request for comment.
Senator Ms Barbara A Mikulski announced she was co sponsoring a bill to limit excessive compensation for executives of bankrupt companies.
Her announcement followed last week's decision by the federal bankruptcy judge overseeing RG Steel's case to allow the company to pay multimillion dollar bonuses to 10 executives. The company's request outraged elected officials and was criticized by the U.S. Trustee Program, a division of the Department of Justice that oversees bankruptcy administration.
Ms Mikulski said that "It is outrageous and unacceptable for executives to reward themselves with bonuses while laid-off workers are struggling to make ends meet."
Source - The Baltimore Sun
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