The Adani Group on Sunday became the second largest cement producer in India after Gautam Adani's conglomerate sealed a $10.5 billion deal with Holcim Ltd. Holcim holds 63.19 per cent stake in Ambuja Cements and 54.53 per cent in ACC.
After this deal, the Adani group acquired 63.19% of stakes in Swiss cement major Holcim Ltd's India operations.
Swiss cement major Holcim Ltd. initiated disinvestment in its India businesses to reduce its reliance on Carbon-intensive cement production which produces high levels of Carbon emissions and thus cautioned many environmentally conscious investors.
The Aditya Birla Group owned Ultra Tech cement is the largest cement producer in the country which has the capacity to produce 120 million tonnes of cement annually. Meanwhile, the second largest cement producer, Ambuja and ACC have a combined capacity of 70 million tonnes.
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In a statement issued by the Adani Group, the company said that the company had acquired Holcim Ltd’s entire stake in Ambuja and ACC through an offshore special purpose vehicle.
Holcim in its statement said that it would receive nearly $6.4 billion for the stakes, the transaction is expected to complete in the second half of 2022. The company further said it had signed a binding agreement for the Adani Group to acquire Holcim's business in India, comprising its stake in Ambuja Cement, which owns a 50.05% interest in ACC, as well as its 4.48% direct stake in ACC.
Gautam Adani’s Adani Group had last year set up two cement subsidiaries- Adani Cementation Ltd., and Adani Cement Ltd. Over the years the group has diversified from its primary business of operating ports, power plants and coal mines into airports, data centres and clean energy.
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"Our move into the cement business is yet another validation of our belief in our nation's growth story. Not only is India expected to remain one of the world's largest demand-driven economies for several decades, India also continues to be the world's second largest cement market and yet has less than half of the global average per capita cement consumption," said Gautam Adani.
