Amid speculation that Larsen and Toubro Ltd (L&T) is planning to sell its stake in Dhamra Port Co Ltd (DPCL), an equal joint venture between the engineering giant and Tata Steel Ltd, the Odisha government has ruled out immediate allotment of land for the port's second phase expansion.

"Allotment of additional land to DPCL for the second phase development at this stage does not appear tenable. Further claim of additional land by DPCL shall be considered by the state government on the basis of a norm (thumb rule) being formulated,” G Mathi Vathanan, secretary (commerce and transport), Odisha, stated in a letter to Santosh K Mohapatra, chief executive officer (CEO) of DPCL.