Adani Ports to buy Karaikal Port for Rs1,500 Cr under bankruptcy law : Karan Adani

AHMEDABAD:

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) is awaiting approval fromabankruptcycourtinChennaito buy indebted port company Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd for Rs1,500 crores under India’s bankruptcy law, Chief Executive Officer of APSEZ, Karan Adani,hassaid.

“Through a bankruptcy court, we are taking over Karaikal Port at a capex of Rs1,500 crore. We are the highest bidder for the port and the CommitteeofCreditorshasapproved our bid,” Karan Adani, also a Whole TimeDirectorofAPSEZ,saidinacall with analysts on 7 February after announcing the company’s third quarterfinancialresults.

This is the first time APSEZ has revealedtheacquisitionpriceafterits bid was cleared by the lenders panel ofOmkaraAssetsReconstructionPvt Ltd(OmkaraARC)inDecember2022.

TheChennaibenchoftheNational CompanyLawTribunalisexpectedto cleartheresolutionplansubmittedby APSEZinthenextcoupleofmonths.

The deal will help APSEZ, the port’s unit of Ahmedabad-based conglomerate and India’s biggest private port operator, to tighten its grip on India’s port sector where it controls 12 ports/terminals spread across the western and eastern seaboard. These ports/terminals have a capacity to handle a combined 580milliontonnes(mt)ofcargo.

APSEZ handled 312 mt of cargo in FY22 at a capacity utilisation of 58 percent.

By 2026, the port operator aims to handle 500 mt of cargo and seeks to emerge as the world’s largest port operatorandIndia’slargesttransport utilityby2030.

Karaikal Port would be APSEZ’s second port acquisition under India’s bankruptcy law after Dighi port in Maharashtra.

Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd runs the allweather Karaikal port developed on a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) format under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode on a 30-year concession awarded by the Puducherry government. The port startedoperationsinJune2009.