L K Gupta quits JSW Energy to join Essar

L K Gupta, chief executive officer and the joint managing director of JSW Energy, has resigned from his position.

Sources say Gupta might join the Essar group’s refinery business. He would be working with Naresh Nayyar as the chief executive officer of Essar Energy.

Gupta, who gave his resignation to JSW last week, will officially step down from the position day after tomorrow. He has also resigned from the board of directors of the power company. While Gupta did not answer to calls and text messages, the spokesperson of JSW Energy said they have not officially appointed any other person as yet to take his place. Essar group spokesperson too did not comment on the development.

Gupta joined JSW Energy in June 2010. Prior to JSW, he was working with Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) as director of finance. MRPL is a subsidiary ONGC, which is a public sector undertaking. As per the rules, a person working at a top level position should join a rival company in the same sector. However, it has been one-and-a-half years since he quit MRPL.

Sources also say Gupta has taken permission from the ministry of oil and gas to join a company in the same sector.

Gupta had been serving as the director, finance, of MRPL since May 2006. He joined MRPL in 1999, as a company secretary and went onto become the general manager who looked after the finance department. He became the vice president in 2003, after ONGC took over MRPL.