Anil Agarwal's Hindustan Zinc to pay $506 mn dividend to ease debt burden

Metal tycoon Anil Agarwal’s Hindustan Zinc Ltd. said it plans to pay 42.25 billion rupees ($506 million) in interim dividends, potentially aiding parent Vedanta Resources Ltd.’s deleveraging plans.
 

The zinc maker will pay 10 rupees on every share in the first payout for the year that began April 1, it said in a stock exchange filing on Tuesday. It distributed 55.4 billion rupees in two tranches during the prior year. 

London-based Vedanta Resources is seeking to reduce its debt burden and plans to pay off $3 billion over the next three years with the help of internal payments, including dividends, its Indian unit said at an earnings call last month. Debt at the holding company has come down by $3.7 billion over the past two years, according to the transcript of the call.    
 

Agarwal is also planning to split the group into six listed companies by March 2025 to unlock value.