23 Aug , 2021 By : Kanchan Joshi
Gujarat-based AMNS India has expressed interest in making a bid for state-owned steelmaker Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), days after domestic steel giant Tata Steel was reported to be planning to acquire it.
"AMNS India is exploring this option," news agency PTI quoted a source as saying while answering a question about the company's interest in disinvestment-bound RINL.
RINL is a special steel making company based in Andhra Pradesh's Visakhapatnam. The company, under the administrative control of the Ministry of Steel, operates a 7.3 million tonne (MT) steel plant in the state.
While efforts were made to contact AMNS via email, the company has not answered any questions so far.
Tata's acquisition of Vizag-based RINL
Tata Steel CEO and MD TV Narendran recently said that his company is interested in acquiring RINL, as the plant is strategically located on the eastern coast, and its acquisition will give it more access to the South East Asian markets, where the company already has a presence.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 27 January, gave its 'in-principle' approval for 100% disinvestment of government stake in RINL, also called Visakhapatnam Steel Plant or Vizag Steel, along with RINL's stake in its subsidiaries/joint ventures through strategic disinvestment by way of privatisation.
When asked about Tata Steel's interest in acquiring RINL, Narendran replied in affirmative.
"Yes! Also, because for inorganic growth for long product opportunities... There is a great opportunity because it is east as well as it is south, it is a coastal plant so there are many advantages...," he told PTI.
RINL has approximately 22,000 acre of land and enjoys access to Gangavaram Port, where raw materials such as coking coal etc arrive.
AMNS meeting with Sitharaman
In a tweet on Thursday, AMNS India informed that industrialist Lakshmi N Mittal is meeting Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi.
The company did not elaborate on the reasons for the meeting. Mittal is the Executive Chairman of Luxembourg-headquartered ArcelorMittal, the parent company of ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (ANMS), which is planning to expand its operations in India through brownfield and greenfield routes.
AMNS India is a 60:40 joint venture company between ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel of Japan.
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