BEIJING, Feb. 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- General Steel
Holdings, Inc. ("General Steel" or the "Company") (NYSE: GSI), a
leading non-state-owned steel producer in China, announced today that its Board of
Directors has approved a strategic restructuring plan designed to
accelerate the Company's business transformation.
The transformation includes implementing additional cost-cutting
programs at Longmen Joint Venture, selling the Company's stake in
General Steel Special Steel Pipe Joint Venture Company Limited
("Pipe JV"), and reconfiguring the Company's steel manufacturing
facilities and assets to facilitate expansion into logistics and
Internet-of-Things businesses.
Following an extensive review of its strategy and operational
structure, the Company believes that it is in the best
interest of the Company and
its shareholders to dispose low-efficiency, non-core assets and
to restructure idle land
resources for the purpose of
unlocking their hidden fair value.
- During the fourth quarter of 2014, the Company sold its stake
in the Pipe JV and realized a gain from the sale, which will be
consolidated into the Company's annual report for 2014. As the Pipe
JV had previously incurred significant operating losses, the sale
will effectively lower the Company's future liability and share of
operating losses related to Pipe JV.
- To better utilize its idle land resources in Maoming,
Guangdong Province, the Company is
in the process of building a new, modern logistics center to accelerate the development of
its logistics and Internet-of-Things businesses. The construction
is expected to start in the first quarter of 2015.
Henry Yu, General Steel's
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented: "We look forward
to turning a new chapter in our Company's history. Our industry and
market place are rapidly changing, requiring us to strategically
transform. We observe that the bulk commodity and technology
sectors are converging at an accelerating pace, fueled by a
revolution in the Internet-of-Things where sensors and digital tags
are being embedded into the manufacturing process to capture
greater and more detailed data in order to increase manufacturing
efficiency and improve logistics and supply chain
management."
"We believe our Company is well positioned at the center of this
convergence, and more importantly, we believe that we have the
unique combination of necessary resources - including
optimally-located land, logistical expertise, patented
technologies, and vertical synergies - to capture the exciting new
opportunities and succeed in our expanded business scope. In
addition to our commitment to becoming a leaner and more nimble
steel manufacturer, we are expanding into logistics and
Internet-of-Things businesses. With this restructuring, we are well
on our way in transforming General Steel from an integrated steel
producer into a multi-faceted, synergistic platform that will
comprise not only steel-related businesses but also high-growth,
high-margin non-steel businesses,"
Mr. Yu concluded.
About General Steel
General Steel Holdings, Inc. is
a leading non-state-owned steel maker headquartered in Beijing, China. With seven million metric
tons of crude steel production capacity under management and
operations in Tianjin municipality
and China's Shaanxi and Guangdong provinces, the Company produces a
variety of steel products including rebar,
and high-speed wire.
To be added to the General Steel email list to receive Company
news, or to request a hard copy of the Company's Annual Report on
Form 10-K, please send your request to
investor.relations@gshi-steel.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain certain forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's
current expectations or beliefs about future events and financial,
political and social trends and assumptions it has made based on
information currently available to it. The Company cannot assure
that any expectations, forecasts or assumptions made by management
in preparing these forward-looking statements will prove accurate,
or that any projections will be realized. Actual results could
differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking
statements as a result of inaccurate assumptions or a number of
risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties are set
forth in the Company's filings under the Securities Act of 1933 and
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 under "Risk Factors" and
elsewhere, including those disclosed in the Company's most recent
Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the United States Securities
and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements contained
herein speak only as of the date of this release. The Company does
not undertake any obligation to update or revise publicly any
forward-looking statements, whether to reflect new information,
future events or otherwise.
Contact Us
General Steel Holdings, Inc.
Joyce Sung
Tel: +1-347-534-1435
Email: joyce.sung@gshi-steel.com
Asia Bridge Capital Limited
Carene Toh
Tel: +1-888-957-3362
Email: generalsteel@asiabridgegroup.com
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/general-steel-announces-strategic-restructuring-to-accelerate-business-transformation-300029795.html
SOURCE General Steel Holdings, Inc.