October 13, 2008

TATA Steel may acquire iron ore assets overseas

It is reported that TATA Steel would be looking at acquiring iron ore asset overseas as a part of larger strategy to make TATA Corus combine sustainable in terms of raw materials.

Mr Tata chairman of TATA Group said that “Having security of raw materials and supply is an essential part of the well being of this enterprise. There are very large consuming countries such as China because of which there is a raw materials scarcity, which has to be met for companies to be sustainable. So, yes, we are looking at that.”

Speaking about his group’s acquisition appetite, Mr Ratan Tata said that “Because of the size and scale of the Corus deal, we seem to be cast as a group on an acquisition spree, which is not the case. We would be interested in an acquisition only if there is a product gap that it can fill, there is a strategic fit, or a particular geographical presence that it offers. TATA Steel is looking more at organic rather than acquisition led growth. We have been looking at three Greenfield sites in India.”