Tangshan Iron & Steel Co, Handan Iron & Steel Co and Chengde Xinxin Vanadium and Titanium Co will merge into one listed company via a share swap, Tangshan said in a statement to Shenzhen Stock Exchange yesterday.

After the merger, Tangshan Iron will remain as the only listed unit controlled by Hebei Steel Group while the other two listed entities will lose their company registration, the statement said.

Merging the three units is the "first step" toward listing all of the assets of Hebei Steel, the statement said. The parent company, owned by the Hebei provincial government, was set up in June, and could overtake Baosteel Group Corp as the nation's biggest steel maker once the restructuring is completed, Bloomberg News said.

The listed firm will become one of China's largest publicly traded steel makers, with double Tangshan Iron's assets at the end of 2007 and a net profit 65 percent higher than last year, the statement said. The plan is awaiting approval from shareholders of the three listed firms and relevant government authorities including the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission and the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the statement said.

Their shares have been suspended on the Shenzhen and Shanghai stock exchanges since August 29.

(Shanghai Daily December 30, 2008)