Mittal Steel announces post-merger acquisition plan for remaining Arcelor shares

08 August 2006

Mittal Steel has announced sell-off plans that entitle remaining shareholders of Arcelor to sell their shares to the company within three months following the end of the current merger period. The shares can be sold from August 18 to November 17.

Under the sell-off plan, which conforms to Luxembourg law, the remaining shareholders of Arcelor may sell their shares solely for cash, at a price of €40.40 per Arcelor share (the cash consideration offered to Arcelor in the secondary cash offer), which the Luxembourg Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) has indicated was the fair price in the sell-out proceedings.

As per the provisions of the Luxembourg takeover law, the sell-out offer should be valid for three months, ie from the start of August 18 to the end of business hours on November 17, 2006. Mittal Steel will have a standing buy order at that price on each of the markets where Arcelor shares are listed, including Euronext Brussels, Euronext Paris, the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and the stock exchanges of Barcelona, Bilbao, Madrid and Valencia.

Settlement of trades will take place in accordance with the rules on each market.

If Mittal Steel holds 95 per cent or more of the capital and voting rights in Arcelor at any time prior to the three-month period, the remaining shareholders of Arcelor may sell their Arcelor shares to Mittal Steel at a price of €40.40 per Arcelor share when Mittal Steel exercises such right.

Mittal Steel is the world''s largest and most globally diversified steel company. The company has operations in 27 countries, on five continents. Mittal Steel has a comprehensive portfolio of both flat and long steel products that meet a wide range of customer needs. It serves all the major steel consuming sectors, including automotive, appliance, machinery and construction.