Suzlon rises over Shanghvi 'interest' in energy assets

Sun Pharma dismisses buzz; Suzlon up over three per cent

Shares of Suzlon rose over three per cent today on speculation that Dilip Shanghvi of Sun Pharmaceuticals was in talks for a possible personal investment.

On a day the Sensex fell 0.21 per cent, the Sun Pharma stock hit a 52-week high on the Bombay Stock Exchange as well, but that could be due to US regulators approving its $4 billion merger with Ranbaxy.

Sources said Shanghvi, who Forbes reckons is the second-richest Indian with a net worth of $18 billion, was in talks with promoter Tulsi Tanti to invest in Suzlon's renewable wind energy assets.

"This is being discussed. If it materialises, it will be in Shanghvi's personal capacity," a source close to Suzlon said. A leading Delhi-based consultant is advising Shanghvi on the discussions.

When contacted, a spokesperson for Sun Pharma said the information was ''not true''. The Suzlon spokesperson said the company was undergoing a debt recast and would not comment on any such development.

"Shanghvi has been looking to buy a clean energy asset for some time. This is a personal call by him to add a clean energy project to his portfolio and less to do with his company's investment in a wind energy company," said a senior executive.

On Monday, shares of both Suzlon and Sun Pharma ended in the green. Suzlon closed almost 3 per cent higher at Rs 16.65 while Sun Pharma closed close to 1.5 per cent higher at Rs 928.80.

Renewable energy experts said Shanghvi's move could be prompted by tax benefits. Investment in wind farms is due for accelerated depreciation. The 2014 budget allowed 80 per cent accelerated depreciation in wind power projects. Several rich investors have invested in such projects, including actress Aishwarya Rai, and cricketers Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.

SUN SHINES UNDER SHANGHVI
What the managing director did at the helm

• Dilip Shanghvi, net worth $ 18 billion, toppled Lakshmi Mittal to be 2nd-richest Indian
• Shanghvi, son of a pharmaceutical wholesaler, has built Sun from scratch to the biggest pharma company of India
• Shanghvi has a stake of over 21 per cent in Israel-based BioLight Life Sciences
• Sun, under Shanghvi, acquired a majority stake in Taro in 2010.
• In two years, it made a buyout of Dusa Pharma and URL Pharma in the US
• Sun has made 13 acquisitions between 1997 and 2012
• It proposed to acquire Ranbaxy last year in a $4-billion merger  
• From a start-up, with sales of $0.02 million in 1983, Sun now has a market cap of  Rs 192,369.7 cr

Shanghvi places his investment bets meticulously, which has made Sun Pharma, a start-up with sales of $0.02 million in 1983, India's largest drug maker with a market capitalisation of Rs 192,369.70 crore in three decades.