ArcelorMittal is in preliminary talks with Resurgent Power Ventures to jointly bid for Essar Power Ltd.'s 1,200-MW plant in Madhya Pradesh, India, Bloomberg News reported May 27, citing unnamed sources.

The report said ArcelorMittal made a non-binding offer of 48 billion Indian rupees in February for the power plant, which supplies electricity to ArcelorMittal's takeover target Essar Steel India Ltd.

ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. emerged as the winning bidders for debt-laden Essar Steel after offering US$5.7 billion, but India's Supreme Court blocked the deal pending a review by the bankruptcy court on various appeals.

Tata Power Co Ltd has a 26% stake in Resurgent Power, while the rest is held by ICICI Bank Ltd. and the sovereign wealth funds of Oman and Kuwait, according to Bloomberg News.

Representatives from ArcelorMittal, Essar and ICICI declined to Bloomberg News' request for comment, while Tata Power told the news agency that it does not comment on market speculation.

As of May 24, US$1 was equivalent to 69.39 rupees.