Government-owned NMDC is upbeat about acquisitions in Russia and the US. Chairman and managing director Rana Som said NMDC has zeroed down on two coal properties in Russia and another in the US.
In Russia, NMDC was negotiating for two coal resources ? one Winsin coal mines with reserves of about 50 million tonne and another with Severstale, the largest steel maker of Russia.
Som said for the Winsin coal mine due diligence has already carried out. A team that has been sent would be back by Sunday ( September 25) ? We will go through their presentation. Within 10-12 days we will take a broad view on investment,? Som said, adding NMDC was looking for a small but effective site in Russia.
With Severstale, he said, the company has a memorandum of understanding (MoU), which would be converted to a memorandum of agreement (MoA) within the month.
The MoA would be in terms of bringing a Severstale coking coal mines under a JV of NMDC and Severstale. While the mine under the JV would provide coking coal to NMDC, NMDC on the other hand would provide iron ore to the company.
?The coking coal mine, which they have, will be transferred to a JV against a reciprocal arrangement in respect of iron ore by NMDC,? Som said, adding that the coking coal mine was having a reserve of 17 million tonne.
On the mines in the US, he said NMDC had eyed a mine in Alabama and was looking into a possibility of due diligence.