Adani among potential bidders eyeing stake in India-backed power trader

A STAKE for sale in state-backed electricity trader PTC India is attracting initial interest from potential suitors including Asia’s richest man Gautam Adani, according to people familiar with the development.

Adani is among possible bidders reviewing preliminary information on the business, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. Other Indian conglomerates are also evaluating whether to bid, one of the people said.

State-owned entities NTPC, NHP, Power Grid of India and Power Finance are working with an adviser to weigh selling their stakes of around 4 per cent each, the people said. Bids are due as soon as the end of this month, they said.

A deal would help Adani Group bolster its grip on India’s energy value chain. The conglomerate already has significant interests in India’s energy sector via coal mining and trading businesses, as well as electricity transmission and distribution services through Adani Transmission.

Deliberations are at an early stage and the parties could decide not to submit bids, the people said.

Evaluate Options

“As a part of the company’s business growth strategy, we continue to evaluate various viable options,” an Adani Group representative said in an emailed response, adding that the conglomerate “doesn’t comment on speculations.”

A representative for PTC said the firm is not aware of any such stake sale by its promoter companies. Spokespeople for NTPC, NHPC, Power Finance and Power Grid didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Shares of PTC have declined about 23.1 per cent in the last 12 months, giving it a market value of around US$301 million, according to date compiled by Bloomberg.

PTC, formerly known as Power Trading Corp of India, was incorporated in 1999 as a public-private partnership and began trading energy in 2001, according to its website. It has the largest market share in the country, and its clients include all of India’s state utilities as well as in some neighbouring countries, the website shows. BLOOMBERG