Thyssenkrupp's supervisory board on Friday gave the green light for a steel joint venture with Tata Steel, paving the way for the European steel sector's biggest shake-up in more than a decade.

The largest deal in Europe's steel industry since the takeover of Arcelor by Mittal in 2006, the 50-50 joint venture - to be named Thyssenkrupp Tata Steel - will have about $17.5 billion in sales.