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(Bloomberg) — The Adani Group will raise 71.48 billion rupees ($833 million) by selling up to 20% stake in Mumbai-listed Adani Wilmar Ltd. as it exits non-core activities to focus on the bread-and-butter infrastructure businesses.
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The shares will be divested through a so-called offer-for-sale window of the stock exchanges at a floor price of Rs 275 rupees apiece, the company said in a stock exchange filing Thursday. It will happen over two trading days starting Jan. 10 for institutional investors and high net worth individuals, and Jan. 13 for retail buyers. Adani Wilmar shares closed at 323.45 rupees in Mumbai, down 0.8%.
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Adani Commodities LLP, one of the founders of the company, will sell 175.45 million shares or a 13.5% stake, with a greenshoe option to offer another 84.5 million shares or 6.5%, the filing said.
This is the first phase of the port-to-power conglomerate’s exit from the joint venture in which it holds 44%. In the second phase, Singapore’s Wilmar International Ltd. has agreed to acquire the residual stake at a price not exceeding 305 rupees.
After the transactions, the Gautam Adani-led conglomerate will fully exit the firm and use the proceeds to bolster its core infrastructure ventures that include airports and renewable energy.
The stake sale is happening amid legal challenges faced by Adani in the US, where federal prosecutors have alleged he was part of a bribery scheme to win contracts in India. Rating agencies cited that as a potential risk to fund raising for the group, and placed multiple Adani firms on negative watch.
Adani Wilmar was slated to start a share sale last year to comply with a local securities law that requires at least 25% of the holding to be with public shareholders within three years of listing.
The company listed in 2022 and has until February to meet the rule. Bloomberg reported in August 2023 that Adani Enterprises was exploring selling a stake sale in its consumer-staple joint venture for freeing up capital for core business.
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