Tata Steel UK Suitor Says to Start Due Diligence in Days

Metals trader Liberty House Group will start due diligence on Tata Steel's loss-making UK operations.

British steel workers protest outside of the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain in this October 28, 2015 file photo. REUTERS

MUMBAI: Metals trader Liberty House Group will start due diligence on Tata Steel's loss-making UK operations within a week after a sale process starts on Monday, its boss said, adding he was confident of turning the business around with government help.

Indian-born Sanjeev Gupta, a 44-year-old Cambridge graduate who founded Liberty House in 1992, said he has told the British government that competitive power prices were critical to reviving the business and fighting competitors.

Gupta told Reuters in a phone interview on Thursday that his company had a turnover of around $6.5 billion and that working capital needs would not be a big issue if he buys out Tata's UK plants.