Adani group raises $1.4 bn from stake sale in 3 firms; $9 bn in 4 yrs

Adani group shares ended mixed on Monday after billionaire Gautam Adani-led conglomerate said it recently raised an investment of around $1.38 billion (₹11,330 crore) from stock sales in three listed entities. The gains in Adani stocks were restricted after market regulator SEBI filed a 41-page affidavit in the Supreme Court in the Adani-Hindenburg case and sought ‘appropriate orders’ from the apex court. The SC is slated to hear the case on Tuesday.

Reacting to the news, six of the listed entities – AEL, AGEL, Adani Ports & SEZ, ACC, Ambuja Cements, and NDTV -- ended higher, while the remaining four firms – Adani Power, Adani Total Gas, ATL and Adani Wilmar -- settled in negative terrain.

In a statement released on Sunday, the Ahmadabad-based conglomerate said it has raised ₹11,330 crore by offloading stake in three group firms - Adani Enterprises (AEL), Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL), and Adani Transmission Ltd (ATL). Overall, the port-to-energy conglomerate has raised almost $9 billion in the past four years, led by some marquee investors such as Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), Total Energies, International Holding Company (IHC), and GQG Partners.

“The faith and confidence shown by these large global investors are proof of the underlying strength of the group’s businesses and the Adani Group’s commitment to the highest level of governance. Moreover, the success of the investment program also demonstrates the group’s ability to raise funds across companies at each stage and achieve the stated goals,” the release noted.

“It has attracted investments across various listed entities - Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited (APSEZ), Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL), Adani Transmission Limited (ATL), Adani Total Gas Limited (ATGL) and Adani Enterprises Limited (AEL),” it added.

The release further said the Adani group has attracted large-scale investments from the key global investors such as QIA, TTE, IHC, as well as GQG along with its co-investors Australia Super, Goldman Sachs, University of Texas, Delaware Public Employees Retirement System, Master Trust Bank of Japan, Missouri Education Pension Trust, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Universal Investment Luxembourg, New York State Common Retirement Fund and Employees Retirement System of Texas.

“Adani is committed to raising capital to fulfill its 10-year roadmap of the transformative capital management program, which was formulated in 2016 to execute the plans for various portfolio companies,” it added.

 As per the company, French energy major TotalEnergies invested $3.3 billion in April 2019 in Adani Total Gas and Adani Green Energy. It also entered into an energy partnership with Adani group for the development of a 50:50 joint venture LNG business, Adani Total Private Limited (ATPL). 

In February 2020, QIA invested $452 million to acquire a 25% stake in Adani Electricity Mumbai Limited (AEML), a 100% subsidiary of Adani Transmission.

This was followed by a $2 billion investment in May 2022 by Abu Dhabi-based IHC, which picked up stakes in AEL, ATL, and AGEL.

In the most recent development, veteran investor Rajiv Jain-led GQG Partners invested $3.19 billion in March 2023. The American equity investment firm acquired minority stakes in four of the listed Adani Group companies - AEL, ATL, AGEL, APSEZ - for ₹15,446 crore. Later in May, GQG raised its stake in Adani Group by about 10% and also proposed to participate in the group’s future fundraising activities.

The investment by GQG was the first major capital infusion in the Adani Group since the U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Research’s critical report on the conglomerate came out on January 24, 2023. The report triggered sell-off in group shares resulting in a huge market loss for most of the listed entities.

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