Vedanta to exclude base metals business from sweeping demerger
The group said it will consider the base metals business demerger at a later stage.
Indian metals-to-oil conglomerate Vedanta on Tuesday said it got approval from the majority of its secured creditors for the demerger of the company into six independent companies.
The Anil Agarwal-helmed firm will now seek approval from an Indian tribunal, it said in a press release, after 75% of secured creditors gave their go-ahead.
Agarwal tried unsuccessfully to take Vedanta private in 2020, while his latest attempt to trim down the parent company’s debt last year by getting its unit, Hindustan Zinc, to buy some of the debt-laden firm’s zinc assets in a $2.98 billion deal faced opposition from the Indian government.
Vedanta, late last year launched the overhaul to carve up its business into six separate businesses, a move that analysts said will benefit its debt-ridden parent Vedanta Resources by being able to sell stake in the entities.
The UK-based Vedanta Resources, aims to reduce its debt by $3 billion over the next three years.
The six entities from the spin off would comprise Vedanta Aluminium, Vedanta Oil & Gas, Vedanta Power, Vedanta Steel and Ferrous Materials, Vedanta Base Metals and Vedanta Limited.
Vedanta’s aluminum unit is the country’s biggest producer of the metal, while Hindustan Zinc, a unit of the company is the largest zinc producer in India.
As the country sees swelling demand for steel in the long-term amid higher spending in infrastructure and construction, Vedanta’s spin-off into Vedanta Steel and Ferrous Materials will be its expansion into the flourishing market.
(By Nandan Mandayam and Manvi Pant)
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