Tata Chemicals chairman Ratan Tata, however, told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting that the enabling resolution on the buyback plan had been nullified by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The poll results on the ESOS will be declared on Friday. Tata said that the company would refocus on its operations rather that spread wide.

"There is consolidation taking place in the industry worldwide, so we need to be much more focused than we are today. The management will work on strategies that Manu Seth had commenced," he said.

Tata said that the firm will have to do some cost-cutting to remain in the market, but added that the company is not in a very bad shape as the reserves and surplus are intact. He told shareholders that the businesses are certainly in a crunch and profits might be low, but the situation will change. The firm's soda ash business has been in turmoil due the low priced imports, almost entirely from China, which are even below the variable cost of Chinese producers, he said. The situation was further aggravated by an overcapacity situation, adding that the Government had imposed an anti-dumping duty, which should rectify the situation.

The fertiliser business had also suffered as the retention prices fixed by the Government were not adequate to generate profits, Tata added. He said the fertiliser complex at Babrala, UP, produced 9.82 lakh tonne as compared to 8.78 lakh tonne in the previous year. This represents an increase of 11.8 per cent. He said the plant had been shut down for annual turn-around maintenance for 18 days in April 1999, but has been functioning at full capacity thereafter. Tata Chemicals has also reduced debts by over Rs 200 crore and that 1,167 workers have accepted the voluntary retirement schemes.

On the cement business, he said the demand for cement continues to be erratic making this a difficult year for the company and the cement industry as a whole. Despite adverse market conditions, the average sales realisation of the company's cement increased by 24.4 per cent, Tata added.