The European Commission has approved a merger between Outokumpu and Inoxum, the stainless steel arm of ThyssenKrupp.
“The combination of Inoxum and Outokumpu marks an important milestone in the implementation of our strategic development program,” said Dr. Heinrich Hiesinger, Executive Board Chairman of ThyssenKrupp. “Today’s approval represents an important step on our path to becoming a diversified industrial group. This transaction improves ThyssenKrupp’s strategic profile and reduces its net financial debt.”
With the green light, the companies are underway to becoming a new world market leader in the stainless steel sector. It is expected that the transaction will be closed before the end of this year.
“We are convinced that despite the conditions imposed by the European Commission, the combination of Outokumpu and Inoxum will make the new company significantly more competitive on the global market,” said Hiesinger. “It will create highly promising prospects that will also be of long-term benefit to the Inoxum workforce. I would like to expressly thank Inoxum’s employees and the employee representatives for supporting the combination from the outset and cooperating in the transaction.”
