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HomeEconomyJindal Steel keen to acquire Anil Ambani's bankrupt shipyard Reliance Naval

Jindal Steel keen to acquire Anil Ambani’s bankrupt shipyard Reliance Naval

A successful sale of Reliance Naval will help creditors including IDBI Bank and SBI recoup part of the company’s Rs 108 billion of debt.

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Mumbai: Jindal Steel & Power Ltd., India’s third-largest producer of the alloy by market value, and two other groups were the latest to express interest in bidding for Reliance Naval & Engineering Ltd., according to people familiar with the matter.

For Jindal Steel, controlled by Naveen Jindal, Reliance Naval can be a captive client for the company’s shipbuilding plates, said Vidya Rattan Sharma, managing director at the steelmaker, who confirmed Jindal’s interest. Dubai-based shipping firm GMS and Kotak Special Situations Fund were among the others that registered to bid as of the Feb. 28 deadline, according to the people, who asked not to be identified as the matter is private.

The process to find a buyer for the indebted shipyard, once controlled by former billionaire Anil Ambani, began in May with deadlines being extended four times already. A successful sale of Reliance Naval will help creditors including IDBI Bank Ltd. and State Bank of India recoup part of the company’s 108 billion rupees ($1.5 billion) of debt.

GMS, one of the world’s largest buyers of ships for recycling, the Kotak fund and Sudip Bhattacharya, the insolvency resolution professional for Reliance Naval, didn’t immediately respond to emails for comment.

“We are looking at it in two ways,” Jindal Steel’s Sharma said in an interview. “One is the strategic location as it is port based and the other is that it can be a good outlet to consume our own plates.”

Jindal isn’t partnering with any company for the bid, Sharma said.

The port unit of A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S, the world’s largest container carrier, and 11 other groups had bid for the asset last year. Maersk’s unit though pulled out, the Hindu Businessline reported in October.- Bloomberg


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3 COMMENTS

  1. They have already received an additional 90 days. I hope the insolvency professional will make sure all companies and individuals who are owed money receive it in a timely manner.

  2. The timeline laid out by the IRP in the invitation for EOIs is impractical. The last date for submission of Resolution Plans is 15 Mar 21. The estimated date for submission of Resolution Plan (after approval by the CoC) to the NCLT is 18 Mar 21. In all likelihood, the IRP will go back to NCLT and ask for additional 90 days for finalizing the Resolution Process. Tareek pe Tareekh will continue. Finally, liquidation will be approved by NCLT after many many months. By then, the first two OPVs would have rotted. Same will be the status of other material, equipment, machinery etc. The Navy can keep waiting for the OPVs and the Coast Guad can keep waiting for the Cadet Training Ship and the Fast Patrol Vessels.

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