PLTE Claymont Steel Hlds (MM)

H.I.G. Capital, a Miami-based private equity firm, announced today that its portfolio company, Claymont Steel Holdings (NASDAQ:PLTE), has successfully completed its initial public offering. The Company currently trades under the symbol PLTE. Of the 10,005,000 total shares sold in the offering, 3,755,000 shares were sold by H.I.G. and 6,250,000 were sold by Claymont Steel. The Company�s net proceeds of over $90 million will largely be used to redeem outstanding debt obligations. The offering yielded net proceeds of $59.4 million to H.I.G. and its affiliates, which, after the IPO, retain a 43% ownership stake in the company and majority control of the board. Claymont Steel operates a steel mini-mill specializing in the manufacture and sale of custom-order discrete steel plate in the United States and Canada which is used in a variety of applications including bridges, railcars, tool & die manufacture, and specialty machine & equipment manufacture. The Company's specialized production facilities are specifically configured to provide custom-sized steel plate in small order sizes and on short lead times, which gives it a strong advantage over commodity-oriented domestic steel plate manufacturers which are physically unable to produce a significant portion of Claymont Steel�s product range. H.I.G. Capital acquired Claymont Steel, formerly known as CitiSteel USA, Inc. in June of 2005. Upon consummation of the acquisition, H.I.G. recruited Jeff Bradley, formerly of Worthington Steel, as the Company�s CEO and David Clark, as the Company�s CFO, to complement the existing management team. In partnership with H.I.G., the management team has driven a thorough overhaul of the facilities and operations of the business, investing over $20 million to increase the capacity of the plant from 400,000 tons to 550,000 tons while at the same time increasing its efficiency and reliability. In addition, the team has successfully expanded the company�s share of high margin underserved market niches like custom burned parts and bridge fabrication in the western United States. These initiatives have contributed to a significant increase in Claymont�s operating and financial performance, with EBITDA increasing to over $91 million in the trailing 12 months ended September 31, 2006. Matt Sanford, a Managing Director at H.I.G., commented, �The Claymont story continues to unfold very well for all of the Company�s stakeholders. We believe the Company�s niche, value-added strategy focusing on specialty and custom products will continue to serve it well in the future.� About H.I.G. Capital: H.I.G. Capital LLC (�H.I.G.�) is a leading private equity and venture capital investment firm with more than $3 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, and San Francisco, H.I.G. specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies with attractive growth potential. H.I.G. invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of profitable and well managed manufacturing or service businesses. H.I.G. also has extensive experience with financial restructurings and operational turnarounds. Since its founding, H.I.G. has completed in excess of 70 transactions. The firm currently manages a portfolio of more than 75 companies with combined revenues in excess of $5 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at http://www.higcapital.com. For more information about the Company, please visit www.citisteel.com.