The India-born billionaire delivered a cheque of Rs 500 crore towards a part of the payment for his 49% equity stake in the joint venture Bhatinda refinery.
NEW DELHI: Steel baron Lakshmi N Mittal on Wednesday said he is planning to transfer his assets in Kazakhastan, acquired from Lukoil, Russia’ s main oilproducer, to ONGC Mittal Energy Ltd. The joint venture between the Mittal Group and ONGC’s overseas arm OVL, will have the first right of refusal, Mittal said.
The India-born billionaire delivered a cheque of Rs 500 crore towards a part of the payment for his 49% equity stake in the joint venture Bhatinda refinery with HPCL, while declaring his commitment to build two steel plants in Orissa and Jharkhand each of 10-million tonnes capacity. “The projects are on course,” he said.
Mittal met oil minister Murali Deora and steel minister Ram Vilas Paswan.
Mittal acquired Lukoil’s 50% stake in a Kazakhstan energy firm, Caspian Investments Resources Ltd, for $980 million in April. Both, Lukoil Overseas and Mittal Investments, hold a 50% stake. ONGC Mittal Energy Ltd was formed to scout for oil and gas assets across 21 countries, including Kazakhstan.
“I am confident of getting coal, iron ore and land,” Mittal said referring to the two steel projects in Jharkhand and Orissa. Mittal said he will be meeting the chief ministers of the two states during his current India visit.
“There’s definitely an assurance from the government. We are depending on that to make progress,” he said, pointing out that the each of those plants need 600 million tonnes of iron ore over 30 years. Mittal, who was accompanied by his son and Arcelor Mittal CFO Aditya Mittal, however, did not give a timeframe for starting construction on the two steel plants.
Mittal had announced the $ 9-billion investment in a steel plant in Jharkhand in October 2005. But in December 2006, he signed a MoU with the neighbourig Orissa for a similar steel project, apparently because progress on getting mining rights in Jharkhand was slow.
After his meeting with Mittal, Paswan said he wouldn’t mind Arcelor Mittal getting access to the prized Chiria mines in Jharkhand as long as the public sector Steel Authority of India gets its share.
Mittal expressed his optimism over getting iron ore, coal and land for the steel projects saying “the matter is under consideration and there is a commitment” from the governments.
Earlier this month, the Union Cabinet had cleared Mittal’s 49% equity investment in the nine-million tonne greenfield
refinery project in Bhatinda, which will come up by 2010-11 at a cost of Rs 18,919 crore. Both HPCL and Mittal will subscribe to 49% of the equity investment each of Rs 3,506 crore.
“We have had four foundation stone laying ceremonies for the refinery project. We want it now to take off,” Mittal said, referring to the chequered history of the project. “Going by the speed at which the project is being pursued, there should not be any delay in implementing it or any increase in the cost,” he said.
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