Adani completes Abbot Point acquisition to expand Oz port

Ahmedabad-based diversified business conglomerate, Adani Group today completed the acquisition of Australia's Abbot Point port by paying AUD $ 1,829 million (aprox. Rs 8,900 crore). The Adani group promoted Mundra Port and Special Economic Zone (MPSEZ) is now looking at expanding the capacity of Abbot Point X 50 Coal Terminal (APCT). The acquisition Down Under by Adani is the largest in Australia by any Indian company.

"The deal was closed today with MPSEZ taking over the ownership and operations of the APCT. The signing of the long term lease agreement and the transfer of shares of APCT#1 Pty Ltd marked the completion of the acquisition of APCT," said B Ravi, chief financial officer, MPSEZ.

 

The company aims to expand the port capacities from the current 50 million tonnes to 80 million tonnes over a period of next 4-5 years. The work on expansion project is believed to start within a few months.

"Now, with the acquisition process is over, we will look at initiating the work on the expansion projects in a few months," said Ravi. The port currently has two fully mechanised berths with a coal handling capacity of 50 million tonnes. The company aims to develop additional berth having a coal handling capacity of 30 million tonnes.

The all cash acquisition deal was funded through short term debt from State Bank of India (SBI) and Standard Chartered Bank. The full amount of AUD $1,829 million was remitted to the Queensland Government on Wednesday, the official informed. Meanwhile, the company is in talks with about 7-10 foreign banks for replacement financing.

"The entire deal from selection of bidder to completion was completed in just 28 days, a record of sorts. With the execution of various documents with officials of the Government of Queensland, Mundra Port Pty Ltd has became the owner of APCT#1 Pty Ltd," said Gautam Adani, chairman & managing director, Adani Group. The name of the company has been changed to Adani Abbot Point Terminal Pty Ltd. The company’s nominated directors have come on the Board of the target company. Adani Group's total investments in Australia has reached about AUD 4.6 billion (approx. Rs 22,000 crore). In August last year, the group had acquired coal assets from Australia's Linc Energy for a total AUD $ 2.7 billion (approx. Rs 12,600 crore).