GMR sells 51% in road project to joint venture partners
GMR Infrastructure Ltd on Friday said it had agreed to sell 51% stake in its 99-km highway project in Karnataka to its joint venture partners
GMR Infrastructure Ltd on Friday said it had agreed to sell 51% stake in its 99-km highway project in Karnataka to its joint venture partners.
The deal will help the infrastructure major reduce debt by Rs 1,077.97 crore and enhance liquidity by Rs 85 crore.
As on September 31, 2015, the company’s debt stood at around Rs 43,440 crore.
HT first reported on March 23 about the company’s plans to sell road projects to reduce debt.
“GMR Highways and GMR Infrastructure have signed a share purchase agreement with its joint venture partners to divest 51% stake in GMR OSE Hungund Hospet Highways Pvt Ltd (GOHHH),” GMR Infrastructure said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
“The overall sale consideration is about Rs 85 crore. It is about 1.1 times the book value investment. This is the third major divestment in GMR Group’s road portfolio,” the statement said.
GOHHH operates the Hungund-Hospet section of National Highway No. 13. The project was won by GMR OSE Consortium in 2010 on a design, build, finance, operate and transfer basis. The project is under GMR Highways Ltd.
GMR currently has nine highway projects in its portfolio totalling 730km. It has invested Rs 6,000 crore in the projects till date.
The company has already offloaded stakes in two of its projects — 74% in Jadcherla Expressway Ltd to SBI Macquarie and a 74% stake in GMR Ulundurpet Expressways Pvt Ltd to India Infrastructure Fund Ltd of IDFC Ltd.
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