Oak Brook, Illinois, US-based A.M. Castle & Co., a global distributor of specialty metal and plastic products, has announced that it has reached an agreement with Swiss-based international steel trader Duferco to sell its 50 percent joint venture ownership in the partners’ Kreher Steel business in the US to Duferco. Upon completion of this transaction, which is subject to customary closing and documentation conditions, Duferco will become the 100 percent owner of Kreher. Castle will receive approximately $31.6 million as a result of the transaction, with the sale expected to close on August 22 this year.
“Castle’s decision to divest its interest in Kreher, which has significant business in the oil and gas end market, is in line with our recent streamlined focus on the industrial and aerospace markets. The sale will allow us to direct our full attention on getting closer to our customers in those end markets, growing our business and improving our profitability over the long-term,” said Steve Scheinkman, president and CEO of A.M. Castle & Co.