The British Steel Pension Fund has rejected financier Edi Truell’s bid to take responsibility for the scheme’s £15bn of assets.
A statement released by the trustee claims that Truell wanted to take a share of future profits and would provide limited cover for downside risks if he took over. His offer was conditional on securing commitments from the government, Tata Steel and third parties as well as gaining regulatory approval.
Not even the offer of members getting full benefits was enough to win the trustee’s support.
“Mr Truell was unable to demonstrate that there was any reasonable prospect of these things happening,” a statement read.
“With the benefit of its knowledge of all the circumstances currently surrounding the scheme, the trustee concluded that Mr Truell’s proposals were not viable and would expose members to unacceptable risk,” it added.
Tata Steel wants to separate the pension scheme from its UK business. The parent company’s other plans for the scheme, where only one person pays in for every 13 members, include closing it to new entrants and offering lower benefits for retirees.
When news of Truell’s offer broke, independent pension consultant John Ralfe told portfolio institutional that the bid was “nonsense”.
The trustee is continuing discussions with the government and Tata Steel regarding the future of the scheme.
Truell had not called portfolio institutional back at the time of publication.
