1) Adani Enterprises raises $ 500 million via QIP
Adani Enterprises has raised $500 million through its qualified institutional placement (QIP) which opened on Wednesday.
The Adani Group flagship, however, decided against exercising a greenshoe option of an equivalent amount despite strong investor interest. The QIP saw an order book of more than $1.5 billion. It was launched with a base size of $500 million and a greenshoe option of another $500 million.
The indicative floor price for the QIP was set at ₹2,962 per share
Shares of Adani Enterprises fell by 2% to their day’s low of Rs 3092.10 on the BSE On Thursday, shares of Adani Enterprises closed 0.65% higher at ₹3,173.30 apiece on the BSE.
The funds raised through the QIP issue are planned to be used for the company’s capital expenditure and to repay some debt of the company and its subsidiaries, according to the report.
The QIP attracted investors such as GQG Partners, Quant Mutual Fund, SBI General Insurance, SBI Life Insurance and HDFC Life Insurance along with a few ultra-high net worth individuals
Rajiv Jain-backed GQG Partners first bought a stake in Adani Enterprises by purchasing a 4.1% stake for ₹3,850 crore in March 2023. GQG subsequently invested in group companies Adani Green Energy, Adani Transmission and Adani Power, among others. The value of these investments have reportedly crossed over ₹80,000 crore as of August.
While Quant Mutual Fund has investments in Adani Power and Adani Green Energy, SBI Life Insurance and HDFC Life Insurance are investors in several Adani Group companies including Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone and Adani Enterprises.
In May, Adani Enterprises had secured board approval to raise as much as ₹16,600 crore through a QIP in one or more tranches. With the latest fundraising, it has raised only a fourth of the approved amount through the QIP.
In May 2023, its board had approved raising ₹12,500 crore through a QIP, but the company eventually abandoned the fundraising plan. In August, group company Adani Energy Solutions successfully raised nearly $1 billion through a QIP that was oversubscribed nearly six times.
On September 5 it was said that Adani Group plans to raise between ₹30,000 crore and ₹40,000 crore from retail investors through a non-convertible debentures (NCD) issue over the next three to four years to diversify funding sources and mitigate risk.
The company’s total debt increased to ₹50,124 crore in the financial year 2024, compared to ₹38,320 crore in the previous year. Adani Enterprises’ long-term borrowing increased to ₹43,718 crore in the financial year 2024, compared to its levels of ₹32,590 crore in the previous year.
The external debt was ₹29,511 crore in FY 2024, up from ₹22,237 crore in the previous year showing increased leverage and improved liquidity, as per the report.
This is the first equity fundraising activity for Adani Enterprises since the conglomerate was accused of lapses in corporate governance by US-based short seller Hindenburg in early 2023.
2) Adani Group plans 10 GW overseas hydroelectric projects over next few yrs
Adani Group plans to develop 10 gigawatts (GW) of hydroelectric projects in various countries over the next few years, according to sources familiar with the matter. This move is part of the conglomerate’s goal to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Billionaire Gautam Adani, who heads businesses ranging from rice to cement, had already announced in 2022 that the group would invest $100 billion in the next decade to expand its green energy initiatives. This includes setting up the world’s largest solar energy park in western India.
The group is now exploring hydroelectric projects in countries such as Nepal, Bhutan, Kenya, Tanzania, the Philippines, and Vietnam. These locations have been chosen for their favorable topography and the rising demand for hydropower.
Currently, the Adani Group is focusing on building pumped hydro storage facilities in India, but its green energy arm, Adani Green Energy, already operates 11.2 GW of renewable energy projects. The group aims to increase its renewable energy capacity to 50 GW by 2030, as outlined on its website.
3) Gautam Adani Emerges As Biggest Dollar Gainer In Forbes Rich List 2024
Gautam Adani emerged as the biggest dollar gainer in Forbes India’s 2024 list of the 100 richest individuals. His net worth surged to $116 billion, rising by $48 billion, thanks to a strong recovery after last year’s short-selling incident. This represents a 71% increase in wealth, placing him second on the list alongside his brother, Vinod Adani.
Meanwhile, Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, also saw his net worth grow by $27.5 billion, bringing his total to $119.5 billion, a 30% increase. Ambani was the second biggest dollar gainer of the year. Reliance Industries had announced a bonus issue of shares as a Diwali gift to its investors.
