British Business Secretary Sajid Javid met the chief of Tata Group in Mumbai on Wednesday, a company spokesman said, seeking to secure an agreement on the future of the Indian firm's UK steel assets.
All eyes were on the meeting as Prime Minister David Cameron's government races to find a buyer for Tata Steel's Welsh steelworks Port Talbot and other assets, a week after it announced plans to sell them.
Before heading to India to meet Tata group chairman Cyrus Mistry, Javid said the government stood ready to work with any potential buyers of the assets to save up to 15,000 jobs.
"The meeting is over," a Tata Steel spokesman told AFP, declining to give further details.
Images showed Javid and Mistry stepping out of their cars for the meeting at Bombay House, the headquarters of the Mumbai-based conglomerate.
Tata Steel wants to sell off its British assets due to a global oversupply of steel triggered by cheap imports into Europe from countries including China, high costs and currency volatility.
Cameron has faced mounting pressure from the opposition, trade unions and the press to safeguard the country's steel industry, which dates back to the 19th century.
His government is meanwhile working on a plan to take on some pension liabilities and reduce energy costs to make a deal more attractive to a potential buyer.
