SHAREHOLDERS in a Thai steel company which owns a Teesside plant have approved a financial plan that will maintain the company’s long-term financial stability.

SSI bosses say the share issue, worth more than £260m, is “very good news” for the company’s Teesside operations as it comes on the back of a challenging period for global steel markets.

The meeting of shareholders, held in Bangkok, considered and approved the “comprehensive financial plan”, which will enable SSI and its subsidiaries to “maintain short-term and long-term financial stability.”

Sahaviriya Steel Industries, which last year bought Teesside Cast Products in Redcar for £300m, has had to deal with a series of difficulties since it came online in April, as global steel prices hit a downward spiral.

The company is also investing £37m in a Pulverised Coal Injection plant at Teesside.