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Potential Buyer Emerges for ArcelorMittal Georgetown Wire Rod Mill

Joseph G. Wortley, an entrepreneur from Boca Raton, Fla., USA, is to meet with plant officials and tour the property.  This is the third time Wortley has attempted to buy the mill.  He bid unsuccessfully for the plant in its bankruptcies under former owners in 2001 and 2003. He wanted the property badly enough to sue in an attempt to overturn the winning bid, which was lower than his, but later withdrew the challenge.

James Sanderson, president of United Steelworkers Local 7898, contacted Wortley after ArcelorMittal's announcement to see if he was still interested.

“I am very interested in it,” Wortley said.

He thinks he can make the mill profitable because it makes a product that is specialized, and he does not think ArcelorMittal has used that to its advantage.

“Willy Korf was a smart guy and he located something there that is not duplicated anywhere else,” Wortley said.
Korf was a German industrialist who started the mill in 1968 to get a foothold in American markets. It opened in 1969.

“That plant deserves to live and be producing steel,” Wortley said.

To continue reading about the proposed offer for ArcelorMittal Georgetown, the full article is available here: http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/news/business/article22371300.html

Source: The Sun News