The shares, issued at $5.50 and trading under the ticker STE-T, opened Monday at $15 and rose as high as $18.65. At last check, they were up $18.01, or 228 per cent, to $12.51.

The Hamilton-based company, Canada's second-largest integrated steel producer, emerged from more than two years of court-supervised bankruptcy protection on Friday. Stelco's previous shares were delisted on March 10.

The company is emerging from restructuring with Rodney Mott at the helm. Mr. Mott, the former chief executive officer of International Steel Group Inc., took over as the new president and CEO on Monday from Courtney Pratt, who took on the role of chairman.

Mr. Mott bought 1 million new company shares "as a personal investment" on Monday at a price of $5.50 a share, for a total cost of $5.5-million, Stelco said in a weekend release.

John Novak, who follows the industry for CIBC World Markets in Toronto, pegged Stelco's restructured value at $15 a share and gave the company a "sector outperformer" rating.

"While the new cost structure of the recapitalized company is rather uncertain at the current time, we believe the shares could represent decent value once current cost reduction initiatives are completed," he wrote in a note.

"We also believe the quality of the Stelco assets, particularly the Lake Erie operations and the company's iron ore assets, makes Stelco an attractive acquisition target for both potential North American and international acquirers as the steel industry consolidation theme continues to unfold."

Mr. Novak estimated that the Lake Erie operations are worth $1.4-billion while the iron ore interests are worth $500-million.

The global steel industry is undergoing a period of consolidation. Stelco's Hamilton neighbour and rival Dofasco Inc. was bought by Luxemburg-based Arcelor SA earlier this month for $4.85-billion (U.S.).

Mr. Novak stressed, however, that Stelco's success depends on operational execution and stable steel prices. "Any investment in Stelco is speculative and carries significant risks beyond the general risks of investing in the North American steel sector."

Restructuring firm Tricap Management Ltd., which is partly owned by Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management Inc., has lent Stelco $375-million (Canadian) and invested $50-million for a 38-per-cent stake in the company as part of Stelco's restructuring.

Tricap, one of three firms acting as Stelco's financial sponsors, owned about one-third of the new stock before it began trading. The two other firms that are also financing Stelco — money manager Sunrise Partners LP of Toronto and U.S. hedge fund Appaloosa Management LP — split an ownership stake of at least 34.9 per cent.

As part of its restructuring, Stelco sold several subsidiaries and cut 1,500 jobs. The company raised $125-million by selling plants and equipment and the Ontario government, which kicked in a $150-million loan.

One of Mr. Mott's first major challenges will be to negotiate a new collective agreement with Stelco workers at its Hilton Works facility in Hamilton, Ont. Stelco says its Hamilton operations are not competitive.

Stelco's re-birth comes 26 months after it filed for creditor protection. What followed was one of the most convoluted, expensive, and unusual restructurings in Canadian corporate history.

The restructuring was unusual because steel prices rebounded strongly after the creditor protection filing, leading to big profits at a company that had been losing money.

However, steel prices started to fall again in 2005, and the company lost $73-million in 2005, compared with a profit of $64-million the previous year.