Lakshmi N Mittal,Moni Varma settle multi-million-pound case out of court

Mittal,63,Britain8217;s richest man and chairman and CEO of ArcelorMittal was being sued by former friend and fellow millionaire,Moni Varma 8211; owner of Veetee Rice,over allegations that Mittal reneged on an agreement to pay fees on a major deal he brokered for him in oil-rich Nigeria.

In documents presented to the court,Varma claimed to have facilitated a deal in 2006 for Mittal to access two unexplored oil fields in the Niger Delta,and to have arranged a meeting with former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo.

It is believed Obasanjo had been lined up to give witness evidence in the case.

However,the claim had been dismissed as 8220;opportunistic and speculative8221; by Mittal,who is worth an estimated 12.7 billion pounds.

India-born businessman Varma,64,one of Britain8217;s biggest rice traders,had insisted that the courts would decide.

The deal in question involved a joint venture between a Mittal company,an Indian state oil company and the Nigerian state in which the JV acquired two Nigerian oil blocks in return for a USD 6-billion investment in Nigerian infrastructure.

In the end the oil fields both proved unproductive.

The case had created a stir here as it was likely to offer a rare glimpse into the workings of one of Britain8217;s largest business empires as well as a possible cross-examination of its billionaire chief,Lakshmi Mittal.

The full details of the final settlement between the two parties remain unclear at this stage.