The starting gun has sounded for the latest sale incarnation of Arrium's prized Moly-Cop business.
Street Talk understands a teaser document for the auction, mark two, is hitting the desks of a select group of potential buyers. An information memorandum will follow in mid-August.
Moly-Cop, a manufacturer and supplier of grinding balls and rods, is expected to be worth $1.5 billion to $2 billion.
Administrator KordaMentha confirmed a two-legged sale process, as Street Talk first reported last month; a dual-track for Moly-Cop and a sale/recapitalisation process for Arrium Australia's combined steelworks, port and mining operations at Whyalla and related businesses. Deutsche Bank is working on the dual track while other investment banks are angling to get joint lead manager roles following this week's formal pitching.
The potential trade sale follows a process started last year by former company advisers UBS and Lazard.
Former suitors including Cerberus Capital Management and Argand along with offshore trade players including South Korea's largest steelmaker Posco are back in the frame.
As is private equity giant TPG which had a team in the US assessing the business and is expected to have a second crack. Pacific Equity Partners has opted not to participate. As foreshadowed by this column, Blackstone has been able to re-engage in the process even after Arrium's lenders rejected a $1 billion recapitalisation plan from Blackstone's credit arm, GSO Capital Partners.
Early this month, Moly-Cop started meeting fund managers on a global non-deal roadshow to introduce management to potential initial public offering investors.
Elsewhere, vendors for vitamin company Nature's Care are aiming to have a sale wrapped up by Christmas. Potential acquirers are assessing sale documents ahead of lobbing first-round offers by the end of August.
