Desk
Share
Nippon Steel and US Steel have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Joe Biden administration's decision to block Nippon's proposed nearly $15 billion deal to acquire Pittsburgh-based US Steel.
The lawsuit, filed on Monday in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, alleged that it was a political decision and violated due process. Both companies said in a statement on Monday, “Both Nippon Steel and US Steel have engaged with all parties from the beginning to explain how this deal will enhance US national security, not endanger it.”
The proposed deal would strengthen the US steel supply chain and bolster the US domestic steel industry against the threat from China, the statement said. It also said Nippon Steel is the only partner willing and able to make the necessary investments in US steel.
US President Joe Biden last week rejected Japan's Nippon Steel's proposed deal worth about US$15 billion to buy US Steel. "We need major US companies representing a large share of US steel manufacturing capacity to defend US national interests," Biden said in a statement.
Last month, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) failed to reach a consensus on the potential national security risks of the deal. The committee sent a report in this regard to Biden, after which this decision came.
