Ternium could maintain a stake in Venezuela unit

BUENOS AIRES, April 18 (Reuters) - Steelmaker Ternium may maintain a stake in its Ternium Sidor unit, which is being taken over by the Venezuelan government, parent company Argentine conglomerate Techint said on Friday.

Ternium (TX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which is listed in New York and has its legal base in Luxembourg, has set up a negotiating committee with the Venezuelan government to agree on compensation value, Techint said in a statement.

The company previously said a government-Sidor joint transition committee would take over operations at the Venezuela unit while the terms are agreed.

Techint said Ternium Sidor is a major supporter of other industrial enterprises in the region and "in that framework, Ternium could maintain a participation in the capital of Sidor."

Ternium Sidor is a big supplier of steel slabs to Ternium's Mexican steel operations, which convert them into sheets of steel for other industries.

Paolo Rocca, president of Techint, met on Friday with Argentine President Cristina Fernandez, who is an ally of Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez.

Techint has asked Fernandez to help it negotiate a fair price for Ternium, but the Argentine government has not made any public statements.

Argentina was caught by surprise last week when Venezuela announced it would nationalize Ternium Sidor, which had reached an agreement with Chavez last year to avoid being taken over.

Ternium American Depositary Receipts rose 2.82 percent to $36.48 on Friday, up for a third session in a row after plummeting last week on the news of the nationalization.