New Delhi – Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta Group has outbid the Adani conglomerate to emerge as the top bidder for bankrupt Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL), offering ₹17,000 crore in a challenge auction conducted by lenders on Friday.
The offer, with a net present value of ₹12,505 crore, marks the highest recovery plan so far for the debt-laden company. However, lenders who have admitted claims of over ₹59,000 crore will still face a 71% haircut under Vedanta’s proposal, according to people familiar with the matter.
Auction details
- The bidding round began with a floor price of ₹12,000 crore.
- Only Vedanta and Adani actively participated, while shortlisted firms such as Dalmia Bharat, Jindal Power and PNC Infratech opted out in the final round.
- Bids were submitted over email in successive rounds.
Strategic significance
For Vedanta, the acquisition provides an entry point into cement and infrastructure, sectors where it currently has no presence. The deal would bring marquee assets such as Jaypee Greens, Wish Town, and the International Sports City near Jewar airport into its fold. It also offers a foothold in the rapidly consolidating cement industry, dominated by UltraTech, Adani and Shree Cement.
Meanwhile, Vedanta is also pushing ahead with a major restructuring plan to split its listed entity into five pure-play companies, a move facing legal scrutiny from the Indian government.
Pending challenges
- Regulatory approvals: Unlike Adani and Dalmia Bharat, Vedanta has not yet sought clearance from the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
- Legal hurdles: The Committee of Creditors has asked bidders to commit additional payments if Jaiprakash Associates wins its ongoing land dispute with YEIDA over the 1,000-hectare Sports City project in Greater Noida. The matter is pending in the Supreme Court.
- NCLT proceedings: Separately, Suraksha Group-owned Jaiprakash Infratech has moved the NCLT against the rejection of its earlier bid, with a hearing scheduled for September 12.
Broader picture
Once a formidable force in India’s real estate and infrastructure sector, the Jaiprakash Group has been weighed down by debt for nearly a decade. Successive resolution attempts have yielded little value for banks, making this one of the largest insolvency cases under India’s bankruptcy framework.
Even with Vedanta’s winning bid, lenders will recover less than a third of their exposure. But for Vedanta, clinching Jaiprakash could reshape its portfolio and provide a new growth engine in housing and infrastructure, at a time when India’s economy is expanding at the fastest pace among major economies.
