CRH and India's Dalmia Cement are likely to submit separate bids next month for the cement business of Indian infrastructure builder Jaiprakash Associates, two sources with knowledge of the matter said.
The deal is likely to be worth about $3 billion, which is the total debt linked to the cement business, the sources told Reuters, adding binding bids were due next month.
Others possible bidders include the Indian unit of Germany's HeidelbergCement, India's top cement maker Ultratech Cement and two private equity firms, one of the sources said.
Dalmia, which is among the top five cement manufacturers in India, met with Jaiprakash management last week and visited the company's plants in Madhya Pradesh, a senior executive at Jaiprakash Associates said.
The divestment of the cement business by Jaiprakash, whose other business interests include roads and residential property, is part of a strategy to reduce a debt burden that has been weighing on its balance sheet in the last few years.
Jaiprakash Associates' loss in the September quarter widened to 5.4 billion rupees, from a loss of 1.7 billion rupees the same time last year.
The company's total debt was 612.9 billion rupees ($8.98 billion) at the end of March. Jaiprakash's lenders will have a major say in the sale of the cement business, said the source.
Jaiprakash remains India's third-biggest cement maker, with a capacity of 22 million tonnes a year.
