Jan 14 (Reuters) - Australian steelmaker BlueScope Steel ( BLSFF ) said on Wednesday it would return A$438 million ($292.54 million) to its shareholders through a special dividend of A$1 per share, funded by surplus cash ‌from its recent asset sales.

The surplus cash includes funds from the stake ​sale in its joint venture with India's Tata Steel, ‍an agreement to sell 33 hectares of ⁠land at ⁠West Dapto for A$76 million, and from the ongoing residual projects in ‌its properties group, which is ​expected to deliver about A$200 million in working capital over fiscal 2025 and 2026.

BlueScope, ⁠which manufactures steel products for ‍the ​construction and infrastructure sectors, said it had opted to return capital via dividend because an on-market share ‍buyback was not possible given the current corporate scenario.

Australia's largest steelmaker last week rejected a $9 billion takeover offer from a consortium comprising Australian conglomerate SGH and U.S.-based Steel Dynamics ( STLD ), accusing the bidders of trying to ​buy ‍it "on the cheap".

Its rejection was also backed by BlueScope's largest investor, AustralianSuper, which said the offer ​had undervalued the company. The pension fund holds 13.52% of BlueScope.

The company added on Wednesday that free cash generation was set to ramp up over the next 12-18 months with BlueScope expecting a reduction in capital expenditure of at least ​A$500 million in fiscal 2027 compared with fiscal 2026.

The special dividend would be paid on February 24, it said in its statement.

($1 = ‍1.4972 Australian dollars)