Adani Power announced the completion of acquisition of GMR Chhattisgarh Energy Ltd. (GCEL), which owns and operates a 1,370 MW (2 X 685 MW) Supercritical power plant at Raikheda village, in Raipur. 52.38% of the equity stake in GCEL was acquired from its Consortium of Lenders, following the approval of APL’s resolution plan to acquire a controlling equity stake and restructure its debt. The balance 47.62% equity stake was acquired from the GMR Group. The acquisition of GCEL was concluded at an Enterprise Valuation of approx. Rs. 3,530 Crore.
The Raikheda power plant, which utilises Boiler and Turbine Generator equipment is situated close to the coal bearing areas of Chhattisgarh. This locational advantage will allow GCEL to source domestic coal with lower logistics cost, and make it more competitive while bidding for long term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). GCEL presently supplies power to Gujarat under a short term, 1000 MW Case 4 PPA with the Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd. The addition of 1,370 MW capacity, along with the recently concluded acquisition of the 600 MW Korba West Power Co. Ltd., solidifies APL’s position in India’s private sector thermal power production with operating capacities of 12,450 MW. APL now has a healthy mix of open capacities as well as capacities tied up in long term PPAs, which provide it long term visibility while allowing it to tap into real growth opportunities. APL’s current position will further be consolidated upon completion of the 1,600 MW (2 X 800 MW) Ultra-supercritical power project, which is being constructed in Godda District of Jharkhand for supply of power to Bangladesh, and take the aggregate generation capacity to 14,050 MW.
