Legato stockholders have voted in favour of proceeding with a merger deal to acquire Algoma Steel.
According to a joint companies news release, 74 per cent of holders of Legato common stock voted at a special meeting and voted 92 per cent in favour of the merger.
Legato said the closure of the transaction is "expected to occur as soon as reasonably practicable," once both parties are satisfied with the remaining closing conditions.
The deal, announced last May, is expected to be finalized sometime next week.
The 120-year-old Sault Ste. Marie steelmaker makes hot and cold-rolled steel products, mostly for the North American auto industry.
Legato of New York is a special purpose acquisition company, also known as a blank cheque firm, which are shell companies that raise money through an initial public offering to take a private company public through a merger process.
Following the closing of the merger, the common shares of Algoma are expected to trade on each of the Nasdaq Stock Market and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the new symbol 'ASTL' and the warrants of Algoma will trade on the Nasdaq under the new symbol “ASTLW” and on the TSX under the new symbol 'ASTL.WT.'
Algoma last publicly traded in 2007 before it was acquired by Essar Global of India and taken private. The company emerged from creditor protection as an independent company in November 2018.
With partial funding from the federal government, Algoma is making the move in the coming years to transition from coal-fired steelmaking to electric arc furnace steel production.
The merger with Legato injects US$306 million of much-needed capital into Algoma to make investments in new steel production and pollution reduction technologies in the 2,900-employee company.
In August, the company reported earnings of $214 million during the first quarter of its 2022 fiscal year, a period ending June 30.
