Agarwal seeking joint ventures between Vedanta and Anglo

Anil Agarwal, Vedanta executive chairman

VEDANTA chairman, Anil Agarwal, would not seek a seat on the board of Anglo American, the UK-listed mining group in which he has invested £3.5bn through his private investment company this year. At least, not yet.

“It is a very big stake. I want to operate as a shareholder without a board position for now,” Agarwal told the Press Trust of India (PTI) in an article published in the New India Express on Sunday. However, he intended to form joint ventures between his company and Anglo capitalizing on the UK firm’s technology, especially in the field of diamond mining in India where Vedanta his headquartered.

“There can be joint ventures. They can work together,” he said. “They (Anglo) have technology and India offers opportunities for mining of diamond, copper, coal etc. It is a fantastic company. There cannot be any company better than that. It is a 100-year old company. We will support the management. We like the management,” he told PTI.

Agarwal said there was no intention to make an offer for the balance of Anglo shares. Prior to the new offer, Volcan has voting rights in Anglo of 12.43%.