Chennai-based India Cements announced an open offer to acquire a 20 per cent stake in Raasi Cement at Rs 300 a share. The offer price marks an astonishing 72 per cent premium over Raasis Thursday closing price of Rs 174. The India Cement offer tops up an 18.03 per cent holding in the company "" 8.28 per cent acquired from a rival faction of Raasis promoter family, the Rajus, and 9.75 from the market. In an industry where size is important, the takeover will help the low-profile India Cements group become the second largest company in the industry (ACC comes first). For India Cements, the acquisition also makes commercial sense. If it succeeds, it will entail a total investment of roughly Rs 145 crore for capacity of 3.5 million tonne. A greenfield cement plant of comparable capacity would have cost Rs 350 crore.
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