Gerdau Pays US$262mn for 75% of Ameristeel

Porto Alegre-based steel company Gerdau (NYSE: GGB) has paid Japan's Kyoei Steel Ltd. US$262mn for a 75% stake in US-based Ameristeel Corp., Gerdau announced today, bringing its raw steel capacity up to 6.6Mtpy. Kyoei financed US$132mn of the deal, while another US$98mn came from a syndicate of Canadian banks. Ameristeel is the largest rebar producer in the US, and has plants in Florida, North Carolina and two in Tennessee.