FAIRLAWN, OHIO - Republic Technologies International LLC, a steel bar and rod manufacturer that filed for bankruptcy protection last year, said Wednesday it would sell its assets to the newly formed RTI Acquisition Corp. for about $450 million. <br>
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The sale must be approved by U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Akron. The company, which has a plant in Georgia, said it also would consider better offers if any were made. <br>
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Republic, based in this northeast Ohio city near Akron, agreed to sell its assets to RTI Acquisition. The new company was formed by KPS Special Situations Fund LP, of New York, and Pegasus Partners II LP, of Greenwich, Conn., two investment firms which specialize in restructurings. <br>
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Republic has more than 3,500 hourly employees at plants in Canton, Massillon, and Lorain in Ohio; Beaver Falls, Pa.; Chicago and Harvey, Ill.; Gary, Ind.; Lackawanna, N.Y.; Cartersville, Ga. and Hamilton, Ontario. <br>
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The company has nearly 4,000 employees and had 2001 sales of $1 billion. Its carbon and alloy steel bars and rods are used mainly in the automotive and industrial equipment industries. <br>
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Republic workers approved a new contract in January that runs through April 2006. KPS and Pegasus have reached a successor labor agreement with the United Steelworkers union. The agreement will result in lower wages, Republic said. <br>
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Republic had until May 21 to propose a Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan and have it accepted by creditors. <br>
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Republic Technologies was formed in a combination completed on Aug. 13, 1999, through a series of mergers and asset transfers involving Bar Technologies Inc., Republic Engineered Steels Inc. and USS/Kobe Steel Co. <br>
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The company, in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, said the bankruptcy filing was caused by ``industrywide market conditions, the company's high level of indebtedness following the combination and an overall softening of the U.S. economy.''
