Tata Steel sees no JSW-like issue in Bhushan Steel acquisition

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code does not need a major overhaul in the light of the Supreme Court verdict turning down JSW Steel’s takeover of Bhushan Power and Steel, according to a top executive of Tata Steel.

Koushik Chatterjee, executive director and chief financial officer, Tata Steel told businessline that the (SC) judgement pertained to a specific case and the regulation had gone through multiple changes and the government and the IBBI (Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India) had worked to make it a lot more efficient.

“When we went through the process, we had a very tight process because it was monitored very sharply by all the responsible stakeholders and we went through it within a certain time frame,” he added.

He also ruled out any impact of the judgement on Tata Steel’s acquisition of Bhushan Steel under the bankruptcy laws.

“N we did not have this kind of issue (like in JSW case). We had actually gone through two rounds. The first round was when we acquired the asset and then we went through it during the merger process. So it was validated at multiple levels,” he said.

In 2018, Tata Steel had acquired Bhushan Steel through its subsidiary Bamnipal Steel under the IBC process by paying ₹35,200 crore to Bhushan Steel’s creditor banks and an additional ₹1,200 crore over 12 months to operational creditors.

In an unprecedented judgement, the Apex Court earlier this month quashed JSW Steel’s Rs 19,350-crore acquisition of Bhushan Power and Steel and ordered its liquidation.

The top court was critical of JSW Steel for using a mix of equity and optionally convertible debentures to complete the takeover instead of pure equity and a failure to implement the plan within the timeframe mandated under the insolvency law.

“So I think it (SC judgement) may be a separate, it may be the uniqueness or the specificity of the case which has come out in this particular matter,” he added.

Asked whether Tata Steel will be interested in bidding for BPSL if put on the block again, Chatterjee said a lot of the process still remains to be seen and to see where this (JSW case) leads.

Published on May 13, 2025