Indian Group May Bid for Rio Tinto Alcan Unit-Paper

MUMBAI, June 21 -- India's Aditya Birla Group is evaluating the possibility of bidding for the rolled products division of Rio Tinto Alcan to boost sales in the United States and Europe, the Economic Times reported on Monday.

North American-based Novelis Inc [NVLX.UL], a unit of aluminium maker Hindalco Industries (HALC.BO: Quote) that is controlled by the Indian group, could put in a bid, the newspaper said, citing people familiar with the development. It said the group was looking at various options for the deal including owning less than 100 percent of the rolled products division of Rio Tinto Alcan, a unit of the global mining giant Rio Tinto (RIO.L: Quote) (RIO.AX: Quote).

Novelis is a Canadian corporation formed in January 2005 as a spin-off from Alcan Inc. In 2007, Novelis was acquired by Hindalco Industries. It is the world's leading aluminium rolled products producer based on shipment volume.

It produces about 19 percent of the world's flat-rolled aluminium products and is the number one producer in Europe, South America and Asia, and the second-largest in North America, according to information on Hindalco's website. Officials at Hindalco and Rio Tinto could not immediately be reached by Reuters for comment.

For a full story, see (www.economictimes.com)