Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited (APSEZ) won the tender for Karaikal Port, according to ET report.
The Adani Group subsidiary won the bidding by making a bid of Rs 1,200 crore, beating rival Vedanta’s offer.
The bidding for the stressed port company was conducted under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) 2016.
Karaikal Port’s creditors approved the offer from APSEZ last week, which now has to be approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
The port was admitted for insolvency proceedings by the NCLT bench in Chennai on April 29 this year on the plea of one of its financial creditors, Omkara Asset Reconstruction Company.
The application was filed under Section 7 of the IBC 2016 to initiate corporate insolvency proceedings against the port as the company was unable to pay its debt of Rs 2,960 crore.
Based in Puducherry
Karaikal Port is an all-weather, deep-water, multi-cargo port located near the town of Karaikal in the Union Territory of Puducherry.
Awarded on a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis by the Government of Puducherry in 2006, the port was commissioned in April 2009 by Chennai-based MARG Limited.
The 600-acre port is a strategically located premier, high-tech port on India’s southeast coast with significant prime hinterland.
It is the only port between the ports of Chennai and Tuticorin on the 680 km coastline, which has the unique advantage of being served by four national highways and rail connectivity through six private railway tracks.
Notably, Karaikal Port is the only port in India that has its own logistics solutions and dredging facilities.
Advantage Adani
The acquisition of Karaikal Port is a natural fit for the Adani Group as it expands its port business and will help achieve parity between the East and West coasts.
APSEZ, the flagship shipping arm of the diversified Adani Group, is India’s largest private port operator and owns 12 strategically located ports.
The 12 inland ports in eight maritime states – Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha and West Bengal account for 24 percent of the country’s port capacity.
The Karaikal deal will increase APSEZ’s presence on India’s east coast, where it has acquired Krishnapatnam and Gangavaram ports in the past two years.
APSEZ also operates ports/terminals at Dhamra, Kattupalli, Ennore and Visakhapatnam.
The company recently acquired Gangavaram Port in Andhra Pradesh next to Vizag Port for Rs 6,200 crore.
It is the third largest minor port in Andhra Pradesh with a capacity of 64 MMT established through a concession by the Government of Andhra Pradesh which runs till 2059.