mjunction, the equal joint venture (JV) company held by Tata Steel and Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), is scouting for acquisitions in lieu of expansion and has shortlisted two companies in Europe for the purpose.
“We have identified two companies in Europe and are looking at acquisition or strategic partnerships that are the right fit for expansion in the Buyjunction business, through which we want to expand on the procurement side,” said Viresh Oberoi, MD and CEO, mjunction.
Oberoi said that the company in question would be a leader on the procurement side, and that he expected a deal to be finalised by the end of the current fiscal. This will be the first acquisition by the company, founded in 2001.
“The process of acquisitions in the context of both the companies is in the negotiation stage. The board has approved the acquisition, and once the deal is finalised, we might raise money through a rights issue,” Oberoi said.
mjunction is the largest e-commerce portal in the country, currently valued at Rs 800 crore, with a total transaction value of Rs 24,854 crore, which it aims to double within the next two years to reach Rs 50,000 crore.
Oberoi added that mjunction already provides services to Tata Thailand and Natsteel and Corus is also looking at holding discussions with others for offering e-procurement services to them.
Besides, the flagship mjunction, the company runs coaljucntion, steeljunction, valuejunction, along with the newly launched Buyjunction and the first B2C format-Straightline.
According to Oberoi, the procurement business will grow backed capacity growth in steel capacity and a general addition to the mjunction client list.
“Steel capacity which is set to double from the current 60 million tonne to 120 million tonne will automatically signify growth opportunities for us. Also, we propose to add more clients on the back of a stronger marketing strategy,” Oberoi explained.
