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(Sharecast News) - Sale talks between Thyssenkrupp and Jindal Steel International are taking longer than expected, a senior official at the German industrial conglomerate claimed on Friday.
India's Jindal first made a non-binding offer for Thyssenkrupp's steel unit, TKSE, in September, with due diligence starting in October. Thyssenkrupp has long been keen to offload the struggling business, but on Friday deputy supervisory board chair Juergen Kerner said the talks were "not moving forward".
According to Reuters, he said: "Apparently, the discussions...are taking longer than expected. So things are not moving forward, and that is a bad thing." Workers, he added, could not "afford to be left in limbo for months".
Kerner is also the deputy head of Germany's IG Metall trade union.
In particular, Kerner said labour representatives had asked a number of questions of Jindal but had so far heard nothing back. "We hear promised answers, but these have subsequently been postponed several times."
Jindal did not comment on the report. Thyssenkrupp confirmed talks with Jindal were ongoing.
Last month chief executive Miguel Lopez said planned measures by the European Union to protect the bloc's under-pressure steel sector, including cutting import quotas, had strengthened Thyssenkrupp's position in the negotiations. He also said at the time that Thyssenkrupp remained in constructive talks with Jindal.
The sale of TKSE is a core part of plans by Lopez to overhaul Thyssenkrupp to become a holding company for its five main divisions. It has already spun out marine systems division TKMS, retaining a 51% stake.
The Frankfurt-listed stock was largely unchanged as at 1145 GMT.
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