Tata Steel shares rose 2.53% on Wednesday on the BSE and closed at Rs 263.70, reacting to news that the Tata Group company's UK arm has initiated fresh talks to sell its long products business in Europe. 

The trading volume was high at 12.70 lakh shares, as against the two-week average of 11.26 lakh shares.

On Tuesday, the company had said in a statement that Tata Steel UK Limited (TSUK), an indirect subsidiary company of Tata Steel Europe (TSE), had started negotiations with Greybull Capital to sell UK-based assets, including TSUK's Scunthorpe steelworks, mills in Teesside and northern France, an engineering workshop in Workington, a design consultancy in York, and associated distribution facilities.

The company added that about 4,700 people are employed at Long Products Europe and its distribution facilities.

Tata Steel Europe employs about 30,000 people across Europe, including about 17,000 in the UK.

Karl Koehler, Chief Executive of Tata Steel's European operations, said: "This is an extremely critical time for the whole industry, and we have been working hard to explore all options that could provide a future for the Long Products Europe business."

"We will now move into detailed negotiations with Greybull Capital. It is too early to give any certainty about the potential outcome of these negotiations. We will continue to work closely with our trade unions and works councils and will communicate any relevant news to employees on an ongoing basis," he added.

Bimlendra Jha, Executive Chairman of the Long Products Europe business, said: "The development of this plan, in cooperation with customers, suppliers and government, has enabled us to reach this stage, though much work remains to be done to reach a successful outcome."