In a statement, the company said it was informed by CFIUS “that the panel has referred the matter to the President [norte–americano Joe] Biden after failing to reach a consensus” on the acquisition of US Steel.
The commission’s mission is to study plans for the acquisition of any U.S. entity by a foreign investor to identify possible implications for U.S. national security.
The US President now has 15 days to make a decision and Nippon Steel asked Biden to “reflect on the considerable efforts” that the company has made “to resolve the national security concerns that have been raised”.
The Japanese giant highlighted the “important commitments made to develop US Steel, protect North American jobs and strengthen the entire North American steel industry”.
The company promised to invest 2.7 billion dollars (2.6 billion euros) to modernize US Steel’s factories, spread throughout the United States, maintain current jobs and a majority presence of North Americans in the production team. management and the Board of Directors.
“We are confident that our transaction should and will be approved if it is fairly evaluated on its merits,” Nippon Steel concluded.
US Steel also asked Joe Biden to approve the acquisition, describing it as a way to “combat the competitive threat from China”.
The deal “is by far the best way to ensure that US Steel, including its employees, communities and customers, prosper in the future,” the company added in a statement.
The president of the United Steelworkers union, which opposes the acquisition, said in a statement that “It is now up to President Biden to determine the best path forward.”
“We continue to believe that this means that US Steel should remain a national company”, highlighted David McCall.
“The proposed transaction (…) is nothing more than corporate greed, which betrays American workers and puts the long-term future of the country’s steel industry and our national security at risk,” added the union leader.
Biden has repeatedly expressed opposition to the acquisition of US Steel by Nippon Steel, announced in December 2023, for 14.9 billion dollars (14.2 billion euros).
According to sources cited by the financial news agency Bloomberg, Biden intends to formally block the operation for national security reasons before leaving office in January.
The president-elect, Republican Donald Trump, also stated that he was prepared to block the acquisition.
VQ (EJ) // VQ
Lusa/End
Source: https://observador.pt/2024/12/24/comissao-dos-eua-sem-consenso-sobre-aquisicao-da-us-steel-por-empresa-japonesa/
