Deals
India Court Asks Bidder to Pay Essar's Dues to Stay in Race
- Arcelor, Numetal must pay debts of related firms in two weeks
- Both firms have offered to pay $5.7 billion for Essar Steel
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A steel mill that’s emerged as the most sought-after asset in India’s crackdown on delinquent borrowers will cost its purchaser at least $1 billion more than bargained for, after the Supreme Court said bidders must clear the dues of any companies related to them to stay in the race.
The world’s largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal and a VTB Capital-led consortium have been vying for Essar Steel India Ltd., which came on the block after India’s central bank ordered lenders to push it into bankruptcy proceedings last year. Since then, both parties have opposed each other’s eligibility under a rule that disallowed bidders with links to a defaulter from being part of the process, which has already seen two rounds of bidding.