MOSCOW: Mittal Steel, owned by Indian tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, on Friday refused to enlarge its bid for the controlling interest in European steel major Arcelor, Russian media reported.
The Mittal Steel spokesman said that the company would not raise its bid of $23.8 billion, Itar-Tass news agency said in a report from London.
The company would stick to its initial bid rather than the May offer of $33 billion, said the report.
If Arcelor merges with Russia's Severstal Group, the controlling stock of the Luxembourg-based company may amount to 40 billion Euros (over $51 billion).
The Mittal Steel bid implies the payment of 34.5 euros ($44.18) per Arcelor share, which quotes at 33.11 euros ($42.4) at the Paris Exchange, Itar-Tass said.
