The world's biggest steel magnate Arcelor Mittal is meeting with regulatory hurdles in its efforts of acquisition of additional stakes in Indian company Uttam Galva through an open offer, said the group's CEO L.N. Mittal Thursday.

The proposed deal is likely to be discussed in the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) meeting scheduled for Friday. FIPB recommends overseas investments in India.

Asked if the proposed open offer to acquire 29.4 percent additional stake in the Indian firm could be delayed, Mittal, who is an Indian citizen but owns mainly international assets, said: "The process for (acquiring additional stake in) Uttam Galva is already on. We are seeking different regulatory approvals. We hope this process will be completed by mid-December of this year."

"There could be a slight delay in getting the approval from Stock Exchange Board of India (SEBI), so there could be few days delay in starting the open offer but we are still on target to complete this transaction by middle of December," he said.

The world's largest steel maker had last month entered into a partnership agreement with Uttam Galva and said it would buy 35 percent stake in the firm through a mixed route of share purchase and open offer from existing promoters.

The company has bought 5.6 percent stake in Uttam Galva and plans to launch the open offer to buy the additional stake in the company at 120 rupees (2.5 U.S. dollars) a share on October 31, and close on Nov. 19, 2009.