Kolkata-based tea plantation company McLeod Russel India Ltd has agreed to acquire 90 per cent equity stake in Rwanda-based tea plantation firm Pfunda Tea Company Ltd for $19.5 million (approximately Rs 120 crore), according to a stock market disclosure.
McLeod Russel has in principle agreed to sign a share purchase agreement with the UK-based LAB International Ltd to acquire the latter's 90 per cent stake held in Pfunda Tea Company Ltd.
Following the completion of the deal, Pfunda Tea will become a step-down subsidiary of the Indian firm. Pfunda is engaged in tea plantation and manufacturing activities.
In Rwanda, McLeod Russel had previously invested in 2011 when it acquired Gisovu Tea Co. Ltd, whose plantations are located in the country's western province.
Earlier in June, McLeod Russel agreed to acquire a tea processing unit in Vietnam for around $2.09 million (approximately Rs 12 crore).
It has also acquired stakes in overseas companies such as James Finlay (Uganda) Ltd and Olyana Holdings LLC besides Indian firms such as Williamson Tea Assam Ltd, Doom Dooma Tea Co Ltd and Moran Tea Company India Ltd.
Founded in 1869, Brij Mohan Khaitan group firm McLeod Russel is one of the largest tea producers in the world. It has plants in Assam and West Bengal besides those in Vietnam, Uganda and Rwanda. The firm employs over 90,000 people and has offices in the UK and Dubai besides India.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)
