The Daily Times of India reported that Lafarge, Holderbank, and Cemex have been shortlisted as potential buyers of a stake in India's largest cement producer, Larsen & Toubro Ltd.

The three companies are conducting due diligence by examining L&T's financial records and inspecting its cement plants prior to submitting actual bids, a source involved in the bidding process said. The winner is expected to be decided within the next two months.

An L&T spokesman denied that a deadline had been set, and would not comment on whether the list of partnership candidates had been whittled down to just three.

Mumbai-based L&T decided last year to spin off its poorly-performing cement unit into a new company, and to sell a 25% stake in it to a strategic partner.

Major global giants like Italcementi, Italy's biggest producer, and top Indian companies like Grasim Industries Ltd had expressed interest. But those companies are not included in the final list of candidates, the source said.

Analysts reckon that L&T would fetch a price of more than $100 per ton, putting a value on its cement business of around $2 billion. Excluding debt, the cement business is estimated to be worth $1 billion to $1.2 billion, meaning a buyer would have to fork out $250 to $300 million for a 25% stake.

By contrast, Lafarge's recent buyout of two cement plants of Raymond Ltd and Tata Steel were struck at $75 to $80 per ton or a combined cost of $277 million.