Ruias-led Essar Steel is in talks to acquire Egypt's Kandil Steel, a media report said here but a spokesperson of the Indian conglomerate contested this.
"India's Essar Steel is reportedly in talks to acquire Kandil Steel, a mid-sized steel firm in Egypt. The former is believed to have sent feelers to Kandil Steel and is likely to offer a formal proposal to its management in the near future," a local website 'Emirates Business 24/7' said.
Responding to the media report, an Essar Steel spokesperson said, "We would like to state that Essar Steel is not in talks to acquire Kandil Steel. We categorically deny this informantion. This is totally incorrect and is far from truth."
The leading Indian private steel maker has global production capacity of 8.6 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).
Earlier this year, its subsidiary Essar Steel Middle East had said its will set up a 2,50,000-tonne processing and service centre in Dubai's Jebel Ali Free Zone to meet the requirement of its customers in the region.
Kandil Steel makes cold and hot-rolled coil and primarily meets the requirement of auto and consumer durables industry. The report said, it plans to reach a capacity of a million tonnes per year by 2010.
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Last month, Naveen Jindal-led Jindal Steel and Power announced acquisition of Oman-based Shadeed Iron and Steel Co from the UAE's Al Ghaith Holdings for $464 million.
"With green shoots of recovery, Indian steel majors are seen consolidating their presence in the Middle East to cater to the strong demand for steel in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region, which has projected a supply shortfall of 15 million tonnes," the website said.
Steel production for the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar is expected to rise to 8.45 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) in 2010, up from 6.8 MTPA in 2009.