The Adani Group, led by billionaire Gautam Adani, plans to invest Rs 1.3 lakh crore in its portfolio companies this financial year, said group chief financial officer Jugeshinder ‘Robbie’ Singh. He said 70 percent of investments in his portfolio companies, including ports, energy, airports, raw materials, cement and media, will be financed through internal cash generation and the rest through debt.
Singh said the group would seek to refinance $3 billion to $4 billion of debt maturing within the year and raise an additional $1 billion in project financing. The annual injection of $2-2.5 billion of equity capital by attracting new investors is also expected to continue.
Stating that this year will be the completion of the project, Singh said renewable energy company Adani Green will complete a 6-7 GW project, while manufacturing of solar wafers will also be scaled up. The new Mumbai airport will also be completed, he said.
Projected capital expenditures or investments for the April 2024 to March 2025 fiscal year are 40% higher than what the portfolio is estimated to have incurred in FY24.
This comes after the group committed investments of $100 billion over the next 7-10 years, most of which is expected to be dedicated to the group’s fast-growing businesses, including renewable and green hydrogen, airports and infrastructure.
Around 70% of the planned investments will be dedicated to its green portfolio of renewable energy, green hydrogen and green evacuation, and the remaining 30% will be dedicated to airport and port activities.
Adani’s empire, which was hit by the damning report from US short seller Hindenburg Research, spans ports, power generation, airports, mining, renewable energy, gas, data centers, media and cement. Currently, the Adani Group is the second largest solar energy company in the world, the largest airport operator with 25 percent of passenger traffic and 40 percent of air cargo, the largest port and logistics company with 30 percent of national market share, the largest integrated energy player and second largest cement producer in the country.
Speaking about the Hindenburg report at the company’s annual general meeting on Monday, Adani said: “Typical short sellers target financial market gains. It was different. It was a two-sided attack – a wave of criticism of our financial situation and, at the same time, a campaign of information distortion, drawing us into a political battlefield. The attack was a calculated strike two days before the close of our follow-on public offering. Amplified by a segment of earned media, it was designed to defame us, cause maximum damage, and erode our hard-earned market value.