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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Biden administration is abandoning Nippon Steel’s $14.9 billion bid for U.S. Steel and will stop enforcing requirements set by an executive order this month, the companies said on Saturday.
On January 3, US President Joe Biden blocked Nippon Steel’s plan to buy American steel, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said this week that the deal had received a “thorough analysis” by the interagency review body, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
The delay will give the courts time to review a legal challenge filed by parties challenging Biden’s order earlier this month. The parties previously had 30 days to vacate their transaction.
“We are pleased that CFIUS has approved President Biden’s executive order to extend the requirement for the parties to permanently abandon the transaction until June 18, 2025,” the companies said in a joint statement.
“We look forward to completing a transaction that will ensure the best possible future for the U.S. steel industry and all stakeholders,” he said.
U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel filed a lawsuit on Monday that the CFIUS review was biased and denied their right to a fair review because of Biden’s longstanding opposition to the deal. They asked a federal appeals court to overturn Biden’s decision to allow a new review to close the merger.
The US Treasury Secretary chairs the CFIUS panel, which reviews foreign acquisitions and other investment deals of US companies for national security issues. CFIUS normally decides cases directly or makes recommendations to the president, but in the US Steel-Nippon Steel case, the panel could not reach a consensus on whether to approve or reject Biden, leaving the decision up to him.
Biden and his successor, Republican Donald Trump, voiced their opposition to the Japanese company’s acquisition of the American steelmaker while their candidates touted the union in November’s election, which Trump won.
CFIUS has rejected deals involving close allies of the Group of Seven, including Japan.
