Tata Steel Ltd. is working with advisers for a potential sale of its 50% stake in mjunction Services Ltd., an online marketplace for commodities such as steel and diamonds, Bloomberg News reported Oct. 3, citing sources familiar with the matter.
According to sources cited by the newswire, the steelmaker, which aims to divest non-core assets to slash debt, is seeking about 14 billion Indian rupees for the stake. State-owned firm Steel Authority of India Ltd., or SAIL, holds the remaining half of the consortium.
Discussions over the sale are still at a preliminary phase, the sources told Bloomberg News, with Tata Steel requiring consent from SAIL before proceeding with a deal.
In September, Tata Steel flagged plans to shut down its Orb Electrical Steels unit in Newport, south Wales, U.K., and its Wolverhampton Engineering Steels Service Centre in the U.K., which will result in the loss of hundreds of jobs.
As of Oct. 3, US$1 was equivalent to 71.06 Indian rupees.
