Rama Krishna Sangem
Billionaire Adani may be down, but not out. Adani Green Energy Ltd. will consider resurrecting its scrapped dollar bond between April and June, Group Chief Financial Officer Jugeshinder Singh said Friday, in a show of the conglomerate’s resilience despite the US probe against founder Gautam Adani.
“Once we find clarity, we’ll revive the dollar bond sale,” Singh said in his first media interaction since the US indictment became public last week, roiling the Adani stocks, forcing Adani Green to scrap its $600 million dollar bond and triggering a query from India’s market regulator.
The renewables firm also plans to raise as much as $500 million by February via banks or a private placement in the offshore market, Singh told reporters on the sidelines of an event in Mumbai. Other Adani Group firms may also raise funds through a few public bond sales in India over the next 12 months, Singh said.
The ports-to-power conglomerate with $3 billion worth of refinancing coming up next year has been touting its large cash pile — $6.3 billion — to take care of all its requirements. “No planned acquisition will be put on hold and there will no roll back of capital expenditure,” he said.
US federal prosecutors alleged last week that Adani, Asia’s second-richest person, and his aides participated in a scheme with promises to pay more than $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials for solar energy contracts which was concealed while seeking to raise money from US investors.
Lost $ 34bn valuation
This shaved $34 billion off Adani firms’ market value, put them on ratings watch and forced partners like TotalEnergies SE to suspend fresh investments.
The Adani Group, however, has been aggressively looking to reset the narrative this week. It published a credit report Monday to reassure investors and creditors of Adani businesses’ robust financial health. An Adani Green filing on Wednesday rebutted claims that Adani and his nephew, Sagar Adani, were charged with violating the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and clarified that they been indicted for securities fraud and wire fraud conspiracy.
Reiterating that no Adani Group company was involved in the US probe, Singh said the individuals — Adani founders and others — who were accused, will respond to the US Department of Justice in the next 10 days.
