IMG to vet Vedanta’s offer for stakes in HZL, Balco
“The Cabinet Secretariat has asked us to get the Vedanta proposal vetted by the inter-ministerial group first. We are discussing that,” Vishwapati Trivedi, mines secretary, said on Tuesday. Vedanta on Monday sweetened its offer to buy stake into Hindustan Zinc and Bharat Aluminium.
Its shareholders recently cleared its proposal to pay R21,635 crore — 25% more than the earlier offer — to buy 29.5% stake in Hindustan Zinc, and 49% in Balco. The proposal was later sent to the mines ministry which forwarded it to the Cabinet Secretary.
The London Stock Exchange-listed company had acquired 51% stake in Balco in 2001 and 64.9% stake in Hindustan Zinc during 2002-2003. In January, it had offered R15,493 crore for buying 29.5% in HZL, and R1,782 crore for the Balco stake.
The deal, when completed, would help the government to meet over 72% of its R30,000 disinvestment target. Trivedi said there was no deadline for it to be sent to the Cabinet as a consensus has to be reached first at the IMG which would have officials from the finance, mines and other ministries.
The mines ministry is also looking at reducing export duty on certain grades of iron ore. The idea, Trivedi, said was to sell the lower grade of the iron ore such as fines, which are not being used by the
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