SÃO PAULO — Brazil’s Cia. Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN) has not denied reports of a possible acquisition of ThyssenKrupp AG’s Steel Americas operations, which include its slab plant in Brazil and rolling mill in Alabama.

The company "has as policy to follow the movements of the companies from the sectors in which it operates," it said Jan. 22 in response to queries by São Paulo’s stock exchange Bovespa. "CSN reiterates its commitment (to making) the market aware of any binding act which demands the publication of a material fact."

CSN reportedly offered $3.8 billion to acquire ThyssenKrupp’s Cia. Siderúrgica do Atlântico (CSA) slab plant and the Calvert, Ala., rolling mill, according to a Jan. 17 report from the Wall Street Journal, adding that the Brazilian steelmaker was the sole company to bid for the two plants.

Brazilian newspaper Valor Econômico reported Jan. 18 that CSN would meet with state-owned Brazilian development bank BNDES to discuss how to make such a transaction viable. BNDES could then become a major shareholder at CSN, it said.

CSN president and chief executive officer Benjamin Steinbruch said in June that the steelmaker would be interested in purchasing CSA.

Essen, Germany-based ThyssenKrupp said in May that it was considering "strategic options" for its Steel Americas operations in Brazil and the United States, including a partnership or the sale of such plants. It owns 73.13 percent of CSA, with the remainder controlled by Rio de Janeiro-based Vale SA. 

A version of this article was first published by AMM sister publication Steel First.