Anglo-Dutch company Corus faces a "much brighter future" after the agreed 4.1 billion pounds takeover bid from Tata Steel, a report here said today even as Brazilian steel group CSN appointed top-flight investment bank Lazards to advise on its options for challenging the bid.Also circling is Thyssen Krupp, the German steel giant, which has a market value of 9.4 billion pounds. Severstal, the Russian steel group tipped last week as a predator, is thought to be less likely to intervene because it is busy with its flotation in London.According to a report in The Sunday Times, Tata is almost certain to withdraw if a bidding war develops. The Indian company is offering 455 pence (nearly Rs 161) a share for Corus. Once Corus's debt is included, the deal is worth 5.1 billion pounds.Any rival bid will face a tough obstacle in the shape of Corus's pension trustees. Trustees of the two main Corus schemes, which have assets - and future liabilities - of 13 billion pounds, more than twice the value of the company, have agreed to back Tata's bid, the report said.The size of the liabilities means that the pensions regulator could stop any take-over unless the bidder guaranteed the future of the pension funds, or had trustee backing. Their support was only won by Tata after weeks of delicate negotiations with Corus's management and Tata's financial advisers - the investment banks ABN Amro and Deutsche.Tata has agreed not only to make up the 126 million pounds deficit in the smaller scheme, but also to increase the company's rate of contributions to the larger one for three years. Corus executives said the first commitment alone was worth 13 pence per Corus share.
