CreditSights finds calculation errors in debt report on Adani Group firms

CreditSights said it had discovered calculation errors in its recent debt report on two power and transmission companies controlled by Gautam Adani, following a conversation with the management

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Fitch Group unit CreditSights said it had discovered calculation errors in its recent debt report on two power and transmission companies controlled by India's richest person, Gautam Adani, following a conversation with the management.

CreditSights's report late last month calling the conglomerate "deeply overleveraged" and flagging other risks had sent shares of many Adani companies down.

The debt research firm said in a report dated Sept. 7 that it had spoken with Adani Group's finance and other executives and reconciled some figures for Adani Transmission and Adani Power.

"Management views that the group's leverage is at manageable levels, and that its expansion plans have not been mainly debt funded," CreditSights said about the group that has announced deals worth billions of dollars this year alone.

For Adani Transmission, CreditSights corrected its earnings before interest, tax and amortisation (EBITDA), or core profit, estimate to 52 billion rupees ($652.45 million) from 42 billion rupees earlier. For Adani Power, it corrected its gross debt estimate to 489 billion rupees from 582 billion rupees.

It did not give the period for the estimates.

"These corrections did not change our investment recommendations," CreditSights said, adding that it, however, did not have formal recommendations on the two power and transmission companies.

The combined market value of the Adani Group's seven publicly traded companies - flagship Adani Enterprises, Adani Wilmar, Adani Ports, Adani Green Energy, Adani Transmission, Adani Total Gas and Adani Power - has increased about tenfold in the past three years to about $251 billion.

($1 = 79.7000 Indian rupees)