International Steel Group Inc., the successor to the former LTV Corp., has offered $1.5 billion to acquire the steelmaking assets of Bethlehem Steel Corp., which has been operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since October 2001. If the deal goes through, the combined company would be North America's largest steelmaker, Bethlehem and ISG said, with annual shipments of about 16 million tons.

Construction is one of the markets served by Bethlehem, the No. 2 integrated steel producer in the U.S. The Bethlehem, Pa.-based company's product line includes carbon and alloy plate and pipe.