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‘My family works for Rae Bareli, Modi for Adani, Ambani’

Gandhi took a jibe at PM Modi, saying if the “BJP can make 22 billionaires in the country, his party can make crores of lakhpatis”….reports Asian Lite News

In his inaugural election meeting in Rae Bareli, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi emphasised his family’s longstanding commitment to serving the constituency, contrasting it with what he portrayed as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s alignment with corporate interests.

Gandhi underscored his personal connection to Rae Bareli, citing his family’s legacy of dedicated service to its people, while lambasting the Modi government for allegedly favouring top industrialists with massive loan waivers equivalent to decades of funds allocated under the MGNREGA program.

Gandhi also took a jibe at PM Modi, saying if the “BJP can make 22 billionaires in the country, his party can make crores of lakhpatis”.

He also expressed confidence in his party’s victory in the ongoing Lok Sabha election and said Narendra Modi won’t become Prime Minister on June 4.

Addressing a public meeting in Uttar Pradesh’s Raebareli, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said, “Earlier Narendra Modi used to talk about crossing 400, now he is not even talking about crossing 150. You should write this down… Narendra Modi will not become the Prime Minister of this country on 4 June.”

“If they can make 22 billionaires, we can make crores of ‘lakhpatis’. On June 4, a list of all the poor in India will be made, the name of a woman from each family will be selected and Rs 1 lakh will be credited to the bank account of that woman, each year..,’ he added.

He accused PM Modi of imposing the Agniveer scheme on the country.

“PM Narendra Modi and his office have imposed the Agniveer scheme on the country. He wants the money that goes as pension and in the canteen facilities of Jawan to go to Adani in the form of defence contracts,” he said.

He also accused Prime Minister Modi of creating two categories of ‘shaheed’ in the military.

“PM Narendra Modi has made two types of Jawans. One is the son of a poor, Dalit, minorities and the other is from a rich family. He has given a new name to the son of the poor, Agniveer, who won’t be getting any facilities like pension, canteen…but, if you are a senior officer or one amongst the four, you’ll get all those things. In the military, they have created ‘two-India’, two types of ‘shaheed’,” he said.

The Congress, on May 3, announced Rahul as a candidate from Raebareli and loyalist KL Sharma from Amethi, keeping Priyanka as well as Vadra out of the electoral contest. Sharma is pitted against Union Minister Smriti Irani, who trounced Rahul in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The Amethi seat has been represented by Rahul since 2004, and he remained a member of Parliament from the constituency until 2019. His father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, too, was an elected member of Amethi in the Lower House from 1981 till his death in 1991.

Sonia Gandhi contested and won Amethi in 1999 before passing the baton on to Rahul in 2004. Before Sonia, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had won from Raebareli thrice.

Rae Bareli constituency goes to the polls on May 20 in the fifth phase.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi won the constituency, bagging 5,34,918 votes. Her closest rival, Dinesh Pratap Singh, put up a formidable challenge, gathering 3,67,740 votes.

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‘India’s Growth Unstoppable’

New Delhi: Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani addresses during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of his group companies, on Tuesday, July 18, 2023. (Photo: IANS/VIDEO GRAB)

Gautam Adani said that while the past three decades were about opening India to the world, the upcoming three decades will see the world opening up to India….reports Asian Lite News

The India growth story is unstoppable, and within the next decade, the country will begin adding a trillion dollars to its GDP every 18 months, setting us on the path to become a $25-30 trillion economy by 2050, said Adani Group Founder and Chairman, Gautam Adani.

Addressing a YPO (Young Presidents’ Organisation) Bombay chapter event this week, Gautam Adani said that while the past three decades were about opening India to the world, the upcoming three decades will see the world opening up to India.

“Keep in mind that following our Independence, it took us 58 years to reach our first trillion dollars of GDP, 12 years to achieve the next, and just 5 years for the third trillion. This acceleration is unstoppable,” Gautam Adani told the packed house.

The digital age has democratised the playing field. It has thrown open opportunities to a far greater number of companies, he said.

“This is the age of exponential growth. The most striking manifestation of this digital revolution is the emergence of new disruptive tech billionaires. An interesting statistic shows that in the 1990s, India had just two billionaires. Today, the number is 167,” Gautam Adani noted.

If the last three decades since the 1990s have laid the foundation for India to become the world’s fifth-largest economy, “the journey towards 2050 will be even more transformative and disruptive”, he said.

“And our journey is just starting – a journey built on one of the most exciting platforms that ever existed – a platform called India,” Gautam Adani said.

He also said that by 2050, he foresees the total market capitalisation of listed companies in India to dramatically increase and range from $40-45 trillion, indicating a 10-fold growth from the current $4 trillion.

“No other nation will be even close to achieving such growth, and India will have its own trillion-dollar valued companies. The trends are already visible, and one sign is seen in the number of billion-dollar valued companies we now have,” emphasised the Adani Group Founder and Chairman.

Today, India is home to over 500 companies valued at over a billion dollars, ranking the fourth in the world, he added.

“In 1991, we had none,” Gautam Adani said.

Young Guns, This Way!

As more and more young Indians aim to become entrepreneurs, Adani Group Founder and Chairman, Gautam Adani, has laid out five mantras for them to succeed in life, hoping that “these will mean something for all of you”.

Speaking at a YPO (Young Presidents’ Organisation) Bombay chapter event this week, Gautam Adani said that all the success will come with its challenges and challengers.

“The greater your success, the bigger will you be as a target, and the true measure of your success will not be in your achievements, but in your ability to rise through the adversities that will come your way along with your achievements,” the Adani Group Founder told the gathering.

Gautam Adani then elaborated with the recent example of the shorting that the Adani Group had to go through.

“As most of you will be aware, last year on January 24, we were subjected to a massive attack by a US short-seller. The objective was not just to destabilise us, but also to politically defame India’s governance practices. But despite the efforts to shake our foundations, we stood firm, not just safeguarding our reputation, but also ensuring that we remained focused on our operations,” emphasised Gautam Adani.

“While there were several learnings, this episode also gave us confidence in our resilience. Our recovery highlights the essence of bouncing back stronger, symbolising the spirit of rising after every fall,” he added.

The second mantra is that “we live in a complex world and it’s easy to be sold on the theory of simplicity”.

“While simplicity may be the goal, it is the ability to manage complexity that will differentiate you and make you the ones that can navigate the deep waters as against those that remain on the shallow shores,” said the Adani Group Founder.

“Every business that I have built has been far more difficult than I had anticipated, and over the years, I have become wiser in my belief that only if I can embrace complexity better than others will I be able to differentiate.”

The third principle is that “the dynamic model of a fast-growing nation like ours requires a flexible approach that is rooted in local models as against models that often emphasise specialisation and core competencies”.

“The crux of strategic differentiation often lies in recognising the limitations of bookish knowledge and Western-centric models. While it is important to source ideas from books and literature, keep in mind that these are after all opinions of brilliant storytellers with a great ability to influence,” Gautam Adani noted.

He further said that resilience often requires the ability to withstand criticism.

“The higher you rise, the more you will need to prepare yourself to handle criticism. But instead of allowing it to deter progress, you must be willing to be misunderstood, and yet stay resilient. Therefore, it is about cultivating an inner strength that allows you to remain strong in your convictions, even in the face of severe opposition,” Gautam Adani elaborated.

Number five and the most difficult of all — stay humble.

“Your success will push back on your humility. But humility is the biggest differentiator you can build. Humility is not thinking less of yourself – it is thinking of yourself a little less. True leadership lies in acknowledging your achievements without letting them overshadow the value of self-awareness,” Gautam Adani told the audience.

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SC declines to order SIT or CBI probe in Adani-Hindenburg row

The top court asked SEBI to complete within three months its probe into two cases pending out of 24 cases…reports Asian Lite News

In a relief to the Adani group of companies, the Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to transfer the probe from Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to a Special Investigation Team (SIT) or CBI into the Adani-Hindenburg issue over allegations of stock price manipulation by the Indian corporate giant. 

A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, PS Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the scope of power of the apex court to enter into the regulatory domain of SEBI is limited.

It said the scope of judicial review is only to see whether any fundamental right has been violated. The SC said the facts of the case do not warrant the transfer of the probe to the SIT or other agency. The SC also said there was no material to doubt the investigation carried out by the SEBI.

The verdict of the top court came on a batch of petitions seeking a court-monitored investigation or CBI probe into the allegations made by US-based firm Hindenburg Research against the Adani group of companies regarding violations of the stock market.

The bench said there has been no regulatory failure by SEBI and the market regulator cannot be expected to carry on its functions based on press reports though such reports can act as inputs for SEBI.

The top court asked SEBI to complete within three months its probe into two cases pending out of 24 cases.

The case is related to the allegations (part of a report by short-seller Hindenberg Research) that Adani had inflated its share prices. After these allegations were published, it led to a sharp fall in the share value of various Adani companies, reportedly to the tune of USD 100 billion.

The Adani Group has dismissed the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements.

Various petitions were filed alleging that changes to the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act (SEBI) had provided a shield and an excuse for the Adani Group’s regulatory contraventions and market manipulations to remain undetected.

The apex court then asked SEBI to independently probe the matter and also constituted an expert committee headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice AM Sapre to look into the matter.

In May last year, the expert committee in its report had found no prima facie lapse on the part of the SEBI in the matter.

While reserving the verdict, the Supreme Court had said it has no reason to “discredit” SEBI, which probed allegations against the Adani group, as there was no material before it to doubt what the market regulator has done and the court does not have to treat what was set out in the Hindenburg report as a “true state of affairs”.

It had observed that it cannot ask a statutory regulator to take as a “gospel truth” something which was published in the media.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for one of the petitioners, had told the apex court that there were many factual revelations in the Hindenburg report.

He said it was for the top court to see whether the investigation done by the SEBI was credible or not and whether some other independent organisation or a Special Investigation Team (SIT) needs to be formed to investigate it. (ANI)

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Adani Group’s Market Cap Surges 40% in Three Months

Adani Group

Market experts who track the group closely said that there are two main reasons for such a strong show by the group stocks…reports Asian Lite News

The total market capitalisation of Adani Group’s listed companies has clawed back to over Rs 11 lakh crore, after an initial knee-jerk reaction post reports by OCCRP, Financial Times and The Guardian.

“It is an indication that the current prices factor in all the negatives and the market is ignoring all the incremental allegations. For the group as well as its investors, it could very well mean that the worst is over,” said experts.

The group’s market capitalisation has increased by 40 per cent in the past three months and the rally is being led by the four leading group stocks — Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports, Adani Power and Adani Green Energy. Shares of all four companies have more than doubled from their lows.

While the flagship company AEL’s stock has gained the highest from its lows (up to 150 per cent), Adani Ports and Adani Power, two of the oldest group companies to demerge from the incubator AEL, are at pre-Hindenburg level. 

Adani Ports is the most widely-tracked company in the group by analysts and the most widely-owned by institutional investors among all the group stocks. But despite the claims, including those by its outgoing auditors, both analysts and investors have remained positive on the stock.

Equity research arms of Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, Bernstein, Kotak and ICICI have all maintained buy on the stock of India’s largest port operating company.

Market experts who track the group closely said that there are two main reasons for such a strong show by the group stocks.

The group has demonstrated that its businesses are unaffected by all the noise. In the June quarter of FY24, which was also the first quarter after the short-seller report, the group’s portfolio of listed companies delivered a robust performance with each business delivering strong growth.

The combined EBITDA of all the listed companies increased by 42 per cent year-on-year. At the same time, its balance-sheet continued to strengthen. Net debt to EBITDA is now close to 3x and the cash balance is as high at Rs 42,500 crore.

All financial institutions, equity as well as debt investors and rating agencies, foreign as well as domestic, have unfailingly backed the group and its businesses. The group has comfortably raised close to Rs 39,000 crore from institutional investors, including one of the largest sovereign funds, Qatar Investment Authority, in the last six months. On the debt side, it has raised Rs 18,000 crore in the June quarter alone.

Promoters buying shares worth Rs 6,000 crore of Adani Enterprises in August shows the confidence and faith they have in the group’s businesses.

ALSO READ-Adani Group’s Market Cap Touches Rs 10.62 Trillion

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Adani Group’s Market Cap Touches Rs 10.62 Trillion

Adani Group

The Adani Group’s power portfolio posted strong gains on renewed domestic investor interest…reports Asian Lite News

Adani Group stocks posted gains on Friday, leading to an increase in its market capitalisation by Rs 12,675 crore.

The total market capitalisation of the 10 listed Adani Group companies touched Rs 10.62 trillion, up from Rs 10.49 trillion in the previous closing.

An analyst said, “The Adani Group’s recent surge, especially in its power portfolio, exemplifies the renewed confidence and focus of the investor community on its potential instead. This interest isn’t merely based on current performance but is also a due to the Group’s robust financials and strategic decision-making.

“Even with recent media reports casting a shadow, the market is largely brushing aside the negatives and pivoting to future growth potential of the conglomerate. The Group’s resilience and adaptability in these challenging times have set them apart.”

The Adani Group’s power portfolio posted strong gains on renewed domestic investor interest.

Adani Power’s shares increased by 2.79 per cent to Rs 330.25, taking its market cap to Rs 1.27 lakh crore. Adani Green Energy’s shares gained 1.94 per cent with its market cap rising to Rs 1.49 lakh crore, while Adani Energy Solutions gained 1.59 per cent to post a market cap of Rs 92,017 crore.

Adani Enterprises, the group’s flagship company, saw its share price rise by 1.27 per cent to Rs 2,450.05, and its market capitalisation increased to Rs 2.79 lakh crore. Shares of Adani Ports also moved up by 0.92 per cent.

The boost to the Adani group stocks comes as the market recognises group’s fundamental strengths and brushed aside reports such as the Hindenburg report and the recent OCCRP report. The Adani group has rejected these reports’ claims.

As per reports, the regulator has already examined the funds named by OCCRP in the Adani probe. Despite these external challenges, the Group’s financial numbers are robust, reflecting operational strength and resilience.

In Q1FY24, EBITDA of Adani listed portfolio for Q1 FY2024 grew by 42 per cent year on year to Rs 23,532 crore. The core infrastructure EBITDA registered a growth of 34 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 20,233 crore (86 per cent of portfolio).

AEL Infrastructure Businesses registered EBITDA growth of 96 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 1,718 crore (7 per cent of portfolio). Cement business reported strong recovery on Q-o-Q basis with cost optimization and operational synergies leading to improvement in margins.

In FY23, the Adani Group reported a 36 per cent year-on-year rise in EBITDA to Rs 57,219 crore, delivering robust profitability.

GQG Partners, a US-based investment entity, has made investments in the Adani Group over recent months. The firm initiated with a $1.87 billion investment in March, added another $500 million in May, and acquired a further $1 billion of Adani stocks in June. GQG Partners has been consistently increasing its stakes in Group companies.

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Hindenburg erases Adani’s $100 bn

Chairman gautam adani.(photo:@AdaniOnline)

The crisis marks a dramatic turn of fortune for Adani, who has in recent years forged partnerships with France’s TotalEnergies and attracted investors such as Abu Dhabi’s International Holding Company…reports Asian Lite News

Adani’s market losses swelled above $100bn on Thursday, sparking worries about a potential systemic impact a day after the Indian group’s flagship firm abandoned its $2.5bn stock offering.

The shock withdrawal of Adani Enterprises’s share sale marks a dramatic setback for founder Gautam Adani, the school dropout-turned-billionaire whose fortunes rose rapidly in recent years but have plunged in just a week after a critical research report by United States-based short-seller Hindenburg Research.

Aborting the share sale sent shockwaves across markets, politics and business. Adani stocks plunged, opposition politicians called for a wider probe and India’s central bank sprang into action to check on the exposure of banks to the group.

Meanwhile, Citigroup’s wealth unit stopped making margin loans to clients against Adani Group securities.

The crisis marks a dramatic turn of fortune for Adani, who has in recent years forged partnerships with foreign giants such as France’s TotalEnergies and attracted investors such as Abu Dhabi’s International Holding Company, as he pursues a global expansion stretching from ports to the power sector.

In a shock move late on Wednesday, Adani called off the share sale as a stocks rout sparked by Hindenburg’s criticisms intensified, despite it being fully subscribed a day earlier.

Adani Enterprises shares tumbled by 27 percent on Thursday, closing at their lowest level since March 2022.

Other group companies also lost further ground, with 10 percent losses at Adani Total Gas, Adani Green Energy and Adani Transmission, while Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone shed nearly 7 percent.

Since Hindenburg’s report on January 24, group companies have lost nearly half their combined market value. Adani Enterprises – described as an incubator of Adani’s businesses – has lost $26bn in market capitalisation.

Adani is also no longer Asia’s richest person, having slid to 16th in the Forbes rankings of the world’s wealthiest people, with his net worth almost halved to $64.6bn in a week.

Adani’s plummeting stock and bond prices have raised concerns about a potential wider impact on India’s financial system.

India’s central bank has asked local banks for details of their exposure to the Adani Group, government and banking sources told Reuters on Thursday.

Market and investment group CLSA estimates Indian banks were exposed to about 40 percent of Adani Group’s $24.5bn debt in the fiscal year to March 2022.

Dollar bonds issued by Adani Group’s entities extended losses on Thursday, with notes of Adani Green Energy Ltd crashing to a record low. Adani Group entities made scheduled coupon payments on outstanding US dollar-denominated bonds on Thursday, Reuters reported, citing sources.

Hindenburg’s report alleged improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation by the Adani Group. It also raised concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies.

The Adani Group has denied the accusations, saying the allegation of stock manipulation has “no basis” and stems from ignorance of Indian law. It said it has always made the necessary regulatory disclosures.

Congress questions Group’s ties with Chang Chung-ling

Attacking the government over the Hindenburg report on the Adani Group, the Congress on Thursday questioned the relation between Chinese businessman Chang Chung-ling and the Adani group.

Citing the report, Congress leader Pawan Khera at a press conference said, “As per Hindenburg Research, Chang Chung-ling runs (or used to run) a firm called Gudami International, which was identified as part of an investigation into government fraud in the Adani Group’s alleged circular trading of gems and that Chang Chung-ling and Vinod Adani’s Singapore residential address was the same”

“The most sensational revelation that has gone unnoticed by the Indian media so far, is that of the relationship between the Adani Group and Chang Chung-ling, a Chinese businessman of questionable antecedents,” he said.

The report says, “This is a significant matter, not only for the sake of the shareholders but also for the national security of India,” he added.

He said the Modi government has maintained a stoic silence on the Hindenburg Research report, as if nothing has happened.

“We want to tell PM Modi that we have nothing to say if you cheat your best friend, but shall not keep quiet if you cheat the investors of India – 29 crore policy holders of LIC and 45 crore account holders of SBI,” he added.

Kharge calls opposition meet

Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge called for a meeting of opposition parties on Friday to chalk out a strategy over research group Hindenburg’s report on the Adani Group

Both Houses of Parliament were adjourned on Thursday as the opposition demanded an investigation by the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the new revelations.

Kharge had said on Thursday: “We demand an investigation by the JPC on the issue and will raise the demand inside Parliament. We demand that a JPC should be constituted to go into the alleged irregularities.”

The opposition also alleged that the proceedings of both Houses of Parliament were adjourned to stop them from raising the Adani issue.

ALSO READ-Adani Group gives detailed responses to Hindenburg

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Adani Group gives detailed responses to Hindenburg

New Delhi, Aug 30 (ANI): (File Photo) Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani becomes the world's third-richest person after overtaking Louis Vuitton Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Bernard Arnault, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, on Tuesday. (ANI Photo)

Adani Group, in its 413-page report, has also responded to all 88 questions raised by Hindenburg…reports Asian Lite News

The Adani group, in a sharp and focused response to Hindenburg Research’s report on its businesses, has responded to all 88 questions raised by Hindenburg including the young age of its auditors.

The research firm, in its report, raised concerns about shares of Adani group companies having a possibility of declining from their current levels, owing to high valuations. Hindenburg criticised the groups’ substantial debt, including pledging share loans and called out its auditors, saying they were not capable of complex audit work.

To which the group replied that Adani’s Portfolio has highly effective internal and audit controls and each of the listed companies has a solid governance structure.

In a 413-page response to the Hindenburg Research report on the Adani business interests, the Adani Group has attacked Hindenburg as “an unethical short seller”.

According to the statement, the Adani portfolio and the Adani verticals are focused on bringing India into the global economy and nation-building.

In the summary of the long response by Adani Group, it said the report was “nothing but a lie”.

The Adani report states that by “holding short positions” in Adani stocks, which, simply put, is betting on the stock falling.

Hindenburg exposed its hand as it made huge money with the fall of Adani stocks immediately following the publication of the report on January 24.

“The document is a malicious combination of selective misinformation and concealed facts relating to baseless and discredited allegations to drive an ulterior motive,” the Adani Group’s response said.

Adani Group, in its 413-page report, has also responded to all 88 questions raised by Hindenburg.

It went on to say the report by the US-based firm was intended only to create a “false market in securities” to enable Hindenburg, an admitted short seller, to book massive financial gain through “wrongful means at the cost of countless investors”.

Earlier on Thursday, Adani Group said it was mulling legal options in the US and India against Hindenburg Research after its report accused firms owned by Gautam Adani of market manipulation and accounting fraud.

Jatin Jalundhwala, Group Head – Legal, Adani Group, in a statement, said, “The maliciously mischievous, unresearched report published by Hindenburg Research on 24 January 2023 has adversely affected the Adani Group, our shareholders and investors.”

“We (the Group) are evaluating the relevant provisions under US and Indian laws for remedial and punitive action against Hindenburg Research,” Jalundhwala said.

“The volatility in Indian stock markets created by the report is of great concern and has led to unwanted anguish for Indian citizens,” the legal head said in a statement on Thursday.

Hindenburg, an US investment research firm published a report claiming that the Adani group had links with a labyrinth of off shore tax havens linked to Gautam Adani’s family and the firms exposure to high debt was a concern. The report also claimed that Adani group’s stock price was inflated and had significant downside risks.

On the report affecting Adani shares, Jatin Jalundhwala said, “Clearly, the report and its unsubstantiated contents were designed to have a deleterious effect on the share values of Adani Group companies as Hindenburg Research, by their own admission, is positioned to benefit from a slide in Adani shares.”

Jalundhwala also mentioned Hindenburg, which said that it had taken “short positions in Adani Group Companies through US-traded bonds and non-Indian-traded derivatives, along with other non-Indian-traded reference securities.”

The Adani group’s legal head said, “We are deeply disturbed by this intentional and reckless attempt by a foreign entity to mislead the investor community and the general public, undermine the goodwill and reputation of the Adani Group and its leaders, and sabotage the FPO (Follow-on Public Offering) from Adani Enterprises.”

The timing of the report by Hindenburg Research, Adani Group had said, “clearly betrays a brazen, mala fide intention to undermine” the Adani Group’s reputation with the “principal objective of damaging” the group’s Follow-on Public Offering from Adani Enterprises, the biggest FPO ever in India.

Earlier, on January 25, Jugeshinder Singh, the chief financial officer (CFO) of the Adani Group, on Wednesday said the conglomerate was ‘shocked’ about the Hindenburg Research’s report and termed it a “malicious combination of selective misinformation and stale, baseless and discredited allegations that have been tested and rejected by India’s highest courts”.

“We are shocked that Hindenburg Research published a report on January 24, 2023, without making any attempt to contact us or verify the factual matrix. The report is a malicious combination of selective misinformation and stale, baseless and discredited allegations that have been tested and rejected by India’s highest courts,” the CFO said in a statement.

The timing of the report by Hindenburg Research, the CFO, in his statement, said “clearly betrays a brazen, mala fide intention to undermine” the Adani Group’s reputation with the “principal objective of damaging” the upcoming Follow-on Public Offering from Adani Enterprises, the biggest FPO ever in India.

He went on to state that the investor community has always reposed faith in the Adani Group on the basis of detailed analysis and reports prepared by financial experts and leading national and international credit rating agencies.  (ANI)

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NDTV climbs as Adani gets SEBI nod for takeover bid

SAT says control of NDTV not transferred to VCPL via loan agreement.(photo:Twitter)

The Group had earlier planned to make the open offer last month but decided to revise that to get the SEBI’s nod…reports Asian Lite News

Shares of television channel takeover target company New Delhi Television Ltd (NDTV) hit the BSE upper circuit on Wednesday.

The scrip had hit the upper circuit on Tuesday at Rs 384.10 on and opened at Rs 403.30 on Wednesday which was also the upper price band.

The scrip had touched the 52 week high of Rs 567.85 and low of Rs 75.55.

NDTV shares went up following the nod given by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to the Adani Group to float the open offer for 26 per cent stake in the channel company.

The Group had earlier planned to make the open offer last month but decided to revise that to get the SEBI’s nod.

Curiously, the open offer price is at Rs 294 per share which is far less than the current market price.

As per the offer document, November 18 is the last date for upward revision of offer price and size.

The offer opening date is November 22 and the closing date is December 5.

Be that as it may, on Wednesday, NDTV replying to the clarification sought by BSE, said: “The company is not aware of any negotiations between Adani Group and Vishvapradhan Commercial Private Limited (VCPL) or events that led to the approval of the open offer by SEBI. In compliance with the SEBI (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations, 2011, the Company provided the information sought by the merchant banker to the open offer issued by VCPL.”

The scrip has been on the upswing since August 23, the day on which the Adani group’s AMG Media Networks announced its subsidiary Vishvapradhan Commercial Private Ltd’s (VCPL) decision to exercise its rights to acquire 99.5 per cent of equity shares of RRPR Holding Private Ltd, the investment company of NDTV promoters – Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy.

The VCPL holds 1,990,000 warrants of RRPR Holding entitling it to convert them into 99.99 per cent stake in the latter.

The VCPL has exercised its option in part, resulting in acquisition control of RRPR Holding — 1,990,000 equity shares or 99.50 per cent.

RRPR Holding holds 29.18 per cent stake in NDTV that has three national television channels.

This triggered the issue of open offer to acquire shares of NDTV from the public as per SEBI’s (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations, 2011.

The VCPL, at its sole discretion, may exercise the balance warrants to acquire up to 99.99 per cent of the equity share capital of RRPR Holding at any time and in such manner as it may deem fit.

With an open offer to acquire 26 per cent, the Adani group is looking up to hold 55.18 per cent stake in NDTV.

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Adani Group becomes 1st Indian operator in Lankan port industry

Colombo, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- Aerial photo taken on Sept. 23, 2020 shows a view of the construction site of the Colombo Port City in Colombo, Sri Lanka. (China's CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd./Handout via Xinhua/IANS)

The build-operate-transfer (BOT) agreement which is to remain valid for 35 years, is said to be the “largest” foreign investment ever in Sri Lanka’s port history…reports Asian Lite News

The Adani Group will become the first Indian port operator in Sri Lanka as construction of the Colombo Port’s Western Container Terminal (WCT) is set to start on Wednesday.

The group will have the majority stake in the West Container International Terminal Joint Venture (JV) which is valued at $700 million.

The build-operate-transfer (BOT) agreement which is to remain valid for 35 years, is said to be the “largest” foreign investment ever in Sri Lanka’s port history.

The state-run Sri Lanka Ports Authority will own 15 per cent, while local company John Keells will own 34 per cent interests in the joint project.

A memorandum of understanding signed with India and Japan on the development of the Eastern Container Terminal (ECT) in 2019, was withdrawn following the protest by Sri Lankan trade unions and some political parties.

However in March 2021, the Sri Lankan Cabinet granted approval for the development of the WCT through a public-private partnership (PPP) in collaboration with the SLPA and investors nominated by the Indian and Japanese governments.

According to reports, following the commencement of operations, the terminal is expected to increase the Colombo Port’s capacity to three million TEU a year.

The reports further said that nearly 45 per cent of Colombo’s trans-shipment volumes start from or are destined to an Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) terminal in India.

Completion of construction of the WCT is scheduled by 2024.

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Adani unveils plan for next decade

It is our commitment to invest 70 billion dollars in an integrated Hydrogen-based value chain,” Adani said in a speech at Forbes Global CEO conference in Singapore….reports Asian Lite News

This confidence of a nation is also reflected in the scale of the decisions corporates make. This has been the case with the Adani Group as we benefit from a rising India, Gautam Adani, Chairman, Adani Group said.

“This optimism is the wind in my sails that has made us India’s most valued business. It is the fire that flames my belief in the India growth story. It is the blue in the sky that Indians believe to be the symbol of the limitless. A democracy whose time has come cannot be stopped and India’s time has arrived,” Adani said.

“As a Group, we will invest over 100 billion dollars of capital in the next decade. We have earmarked 70 per cent of this investment for the Energy Transition space. We are already the world’s largest solar player, and we intend to do far more. In this context, Adani New Industries is the manifestation of the bet we are making in the energy transition space. It is our commitment to invest 70 billion dollars in an integrated Hydrogen-based value chain,” Adani said in a speech at Forbes Global CEO conference in Singapore.

Therefore, in addition to our existing 20 GW renewables portfolio, the new business will be augmented by another 45 GW of hybrid renewable power generation spread over 100,000 hectares — an area 1.4 times that of Singapore. This will lead to commercialization of three million metric tons of green hydrogen. This multi-fold business will see us build 3 giga factories in India, Adani said.

“We are in the process of building a 10 GW silicon-based photo-voltaic value-chain that will be backward-integrated from raw silicon to solar panels, a 10 GW integrated wind-turbine manufacturing facility, and a 5 GW Hydrogen electrolyser factory. Today, we can confidently state that we have line of sight to first become one of the least expensive producers of the green electron, and thereafter, the least expensive producer of green hydrogen. It is an absolute game changer for India and opens up the unprecedented possibility that India could one day become a net energy exporter,” Adani added.

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