The Dubai-based Khaitan family, which owns a 99% stake in Loop Mobile, is in talks with Bharti Airtel and two private equity funds to sell its business. Loop, which runs GSM mobile services in Mumbai, is not in talks with Vodafone because under the mergers and acquisition norms the two would own more than 25% of the 900-MHz spectrum in the Mumbai circle. This is not allowed under the rules. (Business Standard)
Unitech to sell two hotels near Delhi, land parcels in southern cities: Unitech, India's fourth-biggest real estate firm, has put two hotels near Delhi and some land parcels in southern cities on the block as it seeks to raise 800-900 crore ($130 million - $147 million) to pare debt, two people close to the development said. The hotels put for sale are the 200-room Country Inn and Suites in Gurgaon and the 250-room Marriott in Noida. While the Gurgaon hotel is operational, finishing work is on at the Noida property. Unitech is already in the process of selling a 3.6-million square feet IT SEZ in Gurgaon, which is part of its Corporate Park portfolio. The developer has 40% stake in it. (The Times of India)
Larsen & Toubro in talks with investors to sell stake in Tamil Nadu terminal, seeks Rs 2,500 crore: Larsen & Toubro is in talks with potential investors for a stake sale in its container terminal in Tamil Nadu, a move prompted by a slow off-take of the port business, two people familiar with the matter said. L&T holds 97% stake in Kattupalli International Container Terminal, a port-cum-shipyard complex developed jointly with state government entity TIDCO, which holds the remaining stake. The Rs 3,989-crore ($650 million) project has been struggling to attract traffic, in part due to excess capacity in south India, since it became operational in February last year. The conglomerate is looking at an enterprise value of Rs 2,300-2,500 crore. (The Times of India)
Fast-food chain Bangs looking for investor: Chennai-based Bangs Hospitality India Pvt. Ltd, which owns the fast-food restaurant chain Bangs, is looking for a strategic investor. The chain that serves fried chicken has 45 outlets in 15 cities across the country. Besides, it has one outlet in Qatar in a tie-up with a local partner Exblowra Trading and Contracting Co. The chain is willing to divest up to 30% stake to the investor. For now, Bangs is keen on expanding its footprint in the South. (Business Line)
Power Grid Corporation of India to invest Rs 472 crore in two projects: Power Grid Corporation of India would invest more than Rs 472 crore ($77 million) in two projects. The investment plans were approved by the transmission utility's board of directors at their meeting held on January 13. An investment of Rs 374.63 crore($61 million) would be made in 'Phase-I of Unified Real Time Dynamic State Measurement (URTDSM) Project', which is expected to be completed in 27 months. Besides, the state-owned company will invest Rs 97.95 crore ($95.9 crore) in 'Transmission System associated with contingency plan for evacuation of power from IL&FS (2x800 MW)'. This project is expected to be commissioned within 18 months from the date of investment approval. (The Economic Times)
IFC doubles rupee bond offering to Rs 2,000 crore: International Finance Corp (IFC) has doubled its rupee bond offering in global markets, to Rs 2,000 crore ($326 million), citing strong investor interest from developed economies, the private investment arm of the World Bank announced on Wednesday. The first global rupee bond was issued in November last year, and is part of IFC's $1 billion(Rs 6,165 crore) global rupee bond program. According to data released by IFC, US-based investors have snapped up about 60% of the issue, followed by European and Asian investors, who have picked up 26% and 14% of the offering, respectively. (The Economic Times)
Courtesy: VCCEdge