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Tata Steel has approached the government with a proposal to acquire some of the mines of the loss-making public sector unit, Bharat Coking Coal Ltd.
Government sources on Tuesday said the Tata Steel brass had already initiated talks with the coal ministry on this matter.
The government is willing to lease out unviable mines to private players for captive purposes. But it was not planning to sell its share in BCCL, coal ministry officials said.
Tata Steel did not reply to an e-mailed questionnaire. But some company executives confirmed that negotiations were under way as part of Tata Steel's expansion plans.
Even though the government has put a proposal to amend the Coal Nationalisation Act, 1973 on the backburner, Tata Steel is banking on the proposed amendments that will enable private participation in coal mining. As a steel producing company, Tata Steel is already eligible for captive mining of coal.
The Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises is considering reviving BCCL. It is expected to recommend that BCCL be handed over to a private or a public sector company on a management contract. BCCL suffered a loss of Rs 592 crore (Rs 5.92 billion) in 2004-05.