Unitech raises Rs 70 cr from Piramal group for Chennai project

Company developing about 49 acres project North Town in Chennai in partnership with another realty firm Arihant

Realty firm Unitech Ltd has raised about Rs 70 crore from Piramal group to complete construction of its joint venture housing project in Chennai.

The company is developing about 49 acres project 'North Town' in Chennai in partnership with another realty firm Arihant. About 2,400 flats and villas are being developed.

According to sources, Unitech has raised about Rs 70 crore from Piramal group's real estate fund to complete construction of the ongoing project.

When contacted, Unitech spokesperson declined to comment.



The JV has plans to develop another 1,200 flats in the second phase of this project.

With real estate market continuing to remain sluggish, Unitech MD Sanjay Chandra had earlier this month said that the company plans to raise about Rs 200 crore from private equity players to part finance its ongoing housing projects.

"We plan to raise Rs 150-200 crore funding through private equity and structured financing to meet working capital needs of our ongoing projects," Chandra had said.

In last two months, the company has ramped up construction activities substantially and increased the labour force by four times. The company is looking at raising funds at project level to further accelerate construction work and delivery.

The company, whose net debt stood at Rs 6,332 crore as on March 31, 2015, is facing problems in some of the housing projects due to delay in delivery.

Unitech presently has ongoing projects in Delhi-NCR, Chennai, Bengaluru and Kolkata. It would raise funds in projects where substantial sales bookings have been achieved.

During 2014-15 fiscal, Unitech's net loss stood at Rs 128.33 crore against Rs 69.74 crore profit in the previous year. Income from operations increased to Rs 3,431.18 crore in the last fiscal from Rs 2,953.44 crore in 2013-14.