IL&FS sells stake in Fujairah oil terminal, clears $100m debt
09:04, 25 November 2021
India’s IL&FS Group has sold its 71% stake in IL&FS Prime Terminals, a state-of-the-art energy storage terminal in the emirate of Fujairah, to VTTI of the Netherlands.
VTTI will now own a 90% stake in the terminal, while the other 10% will remain with the Fujairah government.
The acquisition of the terminal will help VTTI expand its long-established position in the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates.
The sale has resolved outstanding debt of up to INR7.57bn ($100m) as well as enabling the release of a corporate guarantee of $110m.
The key lenders to IL&FS Prime Terminals were First Abu Dhabi Bank, National Bank of Fujairah and the State Bank of India – which had outstanding debt of more than $80m – which has been fully repaid.
Chinese road project
The sale of the stake in IL&FS Prime Terminals marks the second major sale of an IL&FS Group company in a foreign location under the government-appointed board.
IL&FS earlier sold its 49% holding in a Chinese road project – the Chongqing Yuhe Expressway – to China Merchants & PingAn Infrastructure Phase 1 Equity Investment Fund for $141m.
PingAn agreed to take over INR16bn ($213m) debt in the project.
With the latest sale, the board of IL&FS Group has resolved more than INR520bn of debt while maintaining its overall debt estimate at INR610bn by the end of March 2022.
At 14.40 IST, shares in IL&FS Investment Managers traded 4.9% higher at INR6.45 on the National Stock Exchange.
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