Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), the UAE’s largest sovereign wealth fund, will to invest Rs 6,300 crore in structured debt instruments of GMR Infra Enterprises. GMR Group will use the funds to refinance external debt of GMR Enterprises (GEPL), the promoter of GMR Airports (earlier called GMR Airports Infrastructure). GEPL’s total debt has increased nearly 4% year-on-year to Rs 4,477 crore, according to its latest annual report.
The group said the GMR promoter group’s pledge on its shareholding in GAL will reduce significantly upon the completion of the deal. Also, GEPL will be able to consolidate multiple lenders into a single source of capital, it said.
Kiran Grandhi, corporate chairman, GMR Group, said, “Over recent years, we have successfully reduced a significant quantum of corporate debt. We have also demerged GMR Power and Urban Infra from GMR Airports Infrastructure, and merged GMR Airports with GMR Airports Infrastructure to form GMR Airports, a pure play, publicly-listed airport platform. This investment from ADIA will facilitate the repayment of all external debt at GEPL, strengthening our ability to support the continued growth of GAL.”
Khadem AlRemeithi, executive director of the infrastructure department at ADIA, said, “India’s aviation sector has strong growth prospects, backed by the positive long-term fundamentals of the Indian economy, while GMR Group is one of the country’s leading airport operators. This investment aligns with our approach of backing entities that are developing world class transport assets that benefit from demographic growth and increased economic connectivity.”
From: financialexpress
Financial News