 "Birla may buy Jaiprakash Cement assets")
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.
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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.