Adani Ports weighs $350 million rupee bond issuance

AHMEDABAD : Billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate plans to raise about 30 billion rupees ($351 million) through long-term local currency bonds, according to people familiar with the matter, the latest in a string of recent debt raises by the company.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd is in talks with investors to raise the debt in the coming months. The tenor is likely to be long, though details, such as the coupon and maturity, are still being finalized, the people said, who asked not to be identified because the information is confidential.

Adani’s conglomerate, which has interests stretching from ports to green energy, has been regaining creditor confidence after the US indicted Adani last November for an alleged bribery plot, charges the group has denied.

If completed, the ports unit will have borrowed at least $1 billion since May, following an earlier bond sale and a bilateral loan. A successful fund raise would increase the debt maturity profile of the port unit. Adani Ports is positioned to benefit from trade growth in India, where it generates more than 85% of its revenue, according to a separate report by Bloomberg Intelligence published last week.

Representatives for Adani Group didn’t immediately respond to request for comment.

Adani Ports in May raised 50 billion rupees by selling 15 year bonds with a coupon of 7.75%, with the Life Insurance Corp. of India as the sole subscriber to the sale. The unit also raised about $150 million through a bilateral loan agreement with DBS Group Holdings Ltd.

Adani’s airport unit also recently raised around $750 million from global investors led by Apollo Global Management Inc.