Brazilian mining and steelmaking giant Cia. Siderurgica Nacional SA (CSN) has no plans to make any acquisitions in the near future, Bloomberg news agency quoted CSN chief executive Otavio Lazcano as saying, ruling out the possible acquisition of Bulgaria's debt-ridden Kremikovtzi steel mill.

CSN has been forced to review its expansion plans because of the drop in ore prices, which could drop as much as 30 per cent this year. The company's ore sales fell seven per cent in the fourth quarter of 2008.

The Brazilian mining company was seen as the last bidder for Kremikovtzi after Ukrainian steelmaker Smart Holding said on February 25 that it would discontinue talks to take over the Bulgarian steel mill, once the industrial pride of communist Bulgaria.

Earlier this month, CSN was on the cusp of sealing a tolling deal to buy coke from Kremikovtzi, agreeing to deliver the necessary raw materials, whose costs would be discounted from the final price. Reports in Bulgarian media said that the mill and the Brazilian firm were locked in stalemate over the coke selling price, however.

Kremikovtzi's future looks bleaker than ever, with state-owned natural gas distribution firm Bulgargaz set to cut off all supplies to Kremikovtzi on April 1. Since October 2008, Bulgargaz has only been delivering the bare minimum necessary to keep some of Kremikovtzi's production facilities operational, with the coke ovens being the most important ones. The stell mill has had to shut down its blast furnaces after Ukraine's Vorskla Steel, owned by billionaire Konstantin Zhevago, ended its own tolling deal.

"Bulgargaz will be forced to stop gas deliveries to Kremikovtzi unless something changes today," Economy Minister Petar Dimitrov was quoted as saying by website mediapool.bg. He said there were other companies interested in taking over and carrying out Kremikovtzi's environmental protection and modernisation plan, but did not give any names.