M&A

M&A

CCI approves Vedanta’s Rs.17,000-Cr bid for Jaiprakash Associates

Business Line  

Publicly listed Vedanta Ltd has received in-principle approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for its proposal to acquire Noida-based Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL) as part of an ongoing corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP). Vedanta's winning bid for JAL is valued at INR 17,000 crore, which translates to a net present value (NPV) of INR 12,505 crore. Financial creditors have claimed INR 57,185 crore in unpaid dues from JAL.Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL) operates across various sectors, including real estate, cement, power, hotels, and roads. Its significant assets include real estate projects in Greater Noida and Noida, commercial/industrial office spaces in Delhi-NCR, and hotel properties in Delhi-NCR, Mussoorie, and Agra. JAL also possesses four non-operational cement plants in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, along with leased limestone mines in Madhya Pradesh. The company holds investments in subsidiaries such as Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd and Yamuna Expressway Tolling Ltd.The acquisition process involved a challenge under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), where Vedanta's bid outranked those from other participants, including the Adani Group, Naveen Jindal-led Jindal Power, PNC Infratech, and Dalmia Bharat. The CCI approval is now a mandatory step before the Committee of Creditors (CoC) can vote on the resolution plan, in accordance with a recent Supreme Court ruling. The CoC is currently reviewing the submitted resolution plans. Separately, another entity of the Jaypee Group, Jaypee Infratech Ltd, has already been acquired by Suraksha Group through its own insolvency proceedings.