Birla may buy Jaiprakash Cement assets

Kumar Mangalam Birla's UltraTech Cement is in talks to buy cement assets from Jaiprakash Associates, according to sources.

The two companies are in discussions about projects including Jaiprakash's Rewa cement-making complex in central India, said the people, who asked not to be named as the talks are private. Rewa has an annual capacity of seven million tonnes, according to a presentation posted on Jaiprakash's website.

Selling additional assets would help Jaiprakash reduce debt that jumped more than fourfold in the five years through March to $10.3 billion. UltraTech last year agreed to buy a Jaiprakash cement unit based in Gujarat state. Birla is seeking to purchase more cement plants in India and abroad, he said in an interview with Bloomberg TV India in September.

Jaiprakash, the builder of India's only Formula One race track, is also seeking buyers for cement assets in Himachal Pradesh, one of the people said.

Askari Zaidi, a spokesman for Jaiprakash, declined to comment in an e-mailed response to questions from Bloomberg News. Pragnya Ram, a spokeswoman for Ultratech, also declined to comment.

Jaiprakash sold its 74 per cent stake in Bokaro Jaypee Cement, a joint venture with Steel Authority of India, to Dalmia Bharat for Rs 1,100 crores in March.