State-run National Aluminium Company today said it may buy a "minority" stake in an Indonesian coal mine to ensure long-term supply of dry fuel to its proposed $ 4 billion project in the South-Asian nation.
"We intend to buy a minority stake in the coal firm with which, in the next four weeks, we will forge the contract for long-term supply of coal for getting around 8-10 million tonnes per annum," Nalco's acting Chairman B L Bagra told PTI.
"Any decision on buying stake or entering just into a long-term contract will be taken by our Board, scheduled to meet within a month. The decision will entirely rely on the valuation," he added.
"As of today, we intend to opt for buying minority stake in the coal firm. However, if the valuation is too high, we may even refrain from buying the stake and instead go for the long-term contract," Bagra said.
Nalco is setting up a 0.5 mtpa aluminium smelter and 1,250 MW coal-based captive power plant at East Kalimantan province in Indonesia. It had earlier sought expression of interest (EoI) for 8-10 mtpa coal supply from local miners.
Half of the contracted supply would be consumed locally and the other would be docked to India for meeting the need here. The option of buying stake in the firm was also part of the EOI.
"We had received five EOIs and rejected three on various grounds. The proposals of the remaining two will be reviewed in the next Board meeting. Buying stake may happen in any of these two," he said.
However, he declined to reveal the identities of the mining firms.
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