Steelmaking giant Mittal Steel, which is in the midst of hostile takeover for rival Arcelor, plans on making "several acquisitions" in China, an executive for group said in an interview published Thursday.

Mittal Steel's head for Europe, Roeland Baan, told Belgian newspaper L'Echo that although with Arcelor the combined group would have annual production of 110 million tonnes, the company aimed to reach 140 million tonnes annually.

"We have a project in India to increase our production by 10 million (tonnes). Arcelor also has growth plans. The focus will also be on China. So we can expect several acquisitions in that country," he said.

Arcelor announced plans in February to buy a 38.41-percent stake in Chinese steelmaker Laiwu for 218 million euros (275 million dollars).

In September, Mittal bought a 36.67-percent state in Hunan Valin Steel Tube and Wire for 338 million dollars (268 million euros).

At the end of January, Mittal launched a 18.6-billion-euro cash and share offer for Arcelor, which has fiercely fought the bid.