Tuesday, March 7 2006 11:13 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Chicago: The boss of European steel company Arcelor said a hostile takeover bid by global giant Mittal Steel is doomed to failure because most Arcelor shareholders are against it.

In an interview with sources, Guy Dolle said his soundings from a flurry of meetings with Arcelor stakeholders left him confident of beating off the controversial 23 billion dollar raid launched in January by Mittal.

The hostile bid launched by Indian born billionaire Lakshmi Mittal has provoked political anger, particularly in France, whose President Jacques Chirac has railed against the potential impact on jobs at Arcelor.

"I'm convinced that the huge majority of shareholders whom we have met, given the current terms of the offer, will not offer up their shares," he said yesterday(Mar 6,2006).

"In the current conditions, the offer will not succeed," Dolle insisted. Arcelor directors began a world tour of meetings with major shareholders last week that has taken them to Milan, Amsterdam, London and Paris, and now to Chicago.

Dolle said he had met with investors representing 80 to 90 percent of shareholders in Europe.

Institutional investors in France and the US control 20 percent each of Arcelor's stock. Those in Britain hold about 15 percent and another 15 percent is controlled by funds in the rest of Europe.

After his week in the US, Dolle will report back to an extraordinary meeting of the Arcelor board on Friday.

Arcelor, which comprises former national steel interests in France, Luxembourg and Spain, can also count on state support as it battles to fend off the takeover bid by the world's biggest steel maker.