MOSCOW, June 30 (RIA Novosti) - Severstal [RTS: CHMF] denied rumors Friday that it was contemplating deals with third parties in its bid to merge with the world No. 2 steelmaker, Arcelor.
The Luxembourg-based steel giant Arcelor rejected Severstal's merger bid at a board session last week, agreeing instead to be taken over by world No.1 Mittal Steel, headquartered in London.
Severstal said it was continuing to examine all its options with regard to Arcelor, but no definitive decisions had been made yet.
Arcelor shareholders are considering the two merger bids at an extraordinary meeting in Luxembourg Friday.
Some of the company's core shareholders - the Luxemburg government and Polish-born French businessman Romain Zaleski (holding 5.6% and 7.4%, respectively) - said ahead of the meeting that they would support the board's recommendation to opt for the Mittal Steel offer.
An association of Arcelor employees holding stakes in their company said, however, that they would vote in favor of a merger with Severstal.
The Arcelor board's choice in favor of Mittal Steel has sparked sharp criticism from politicians and senior business figures in Russia, who accuse the European giant of unfair competition and discrimination against Russian companies on international markets.
