Ashoka Buildcon
Limited (“Ashoka”) today announced that Macquarie SBI Infrastructure
Fund (MSIF) and SBI Macquarie Infrastructure Trust (SMIT), both of which
are private equity funds managed by the State Bank of
India and Macquarie, will together invest USD 150 mn in
Ashoka’s 100% subsidiary Ashoka Concessions Limited (“ACL”).
Ashoka is a leading highway concessionaire and EPC company, which is listed on the BSE & NSE. With its 16 years of experience as a highway developer, Ashoka has till date executed ~ -3,100 lane kms of highways and currently has an unexecuted order book of = ~ USD 1 bn. One of the pioneers in the road PPP space in India, Ashoka currently has a portfolio of 25 BOT road projects - 20 operational BOT projects and 5 BOT projects under construction/development. Ashoka witnessed the first private equity placement from a pedigreed investor, IDFC Private Equity in 2006. The Company got listed in 2010 with a market capitalization of Rs. 1,700 cr.
Ashok Katariya, Chairman of Ashoka, stated, “Ashoka derives its strength from its vast experience of development and operating highway projects and will continue to focus on its core competency of highway development.”
ACL will currently domicile a portfolio of 7 large sized projects amounting to a project cost of.~ USD 1.6 bn. It is raising USD 150 mn from private equity funds managed by the above Joint Venture for funding the existing portfolio of ACL. While Ashoka shall continue to bring in its engineering, construction and project management capability, association with the SBI Macquarie Joint Venture will enhance its credentials.
Speaking on the occasion Satish Parakh, Managing Director of Ashoka, said,“We are pleased to have the SBI Macquarie Joint Venture as an investor in our road BOT business. We are confident that this will help us strengthen our position as a leading highway developer in India. There are opportunities to be tapped in the Indian roads space, and now we are well positioned to make the most of it. Our conscious and continuous strategy has been cautious aggression while bidding for projects and the same strategy is paying off in today’s volatile environment. We continue to be on the path of creating shareholder value.Suresh
Goyal, Chief Executive Officer of SBI
Macquarie Infrastructure Management (P) Ltd.,
commented, “We remain optimistic on the India infrastructure story of which
roads sector is a critical component. The investment into ACL reflects the
continued execution of the funds’investment strategy, which is to partner with
the best in the industry. Ashoka, who are one of the
pioneers of highway concession projects in India, have a proven
track record of 15 years . This is a long term
partnership and together we will look forward to taking this business to
greater heights.”
Ernst
& Young acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Ashoka for this fund raising
exercise. Sushi Shyamal, Partner at Ernst & Young, highlighted, ”This
investment vindicates our long standing position that quality assets developed
by rational concessionaires will continue to witness interest from large
credible PE investors. The current environment will only favour the long term
players in the India highway space who have a clearly thought
out strategy for survival and growth.”
About Ashoka Buildcon Limited
Established
in 1976, ABL is one of the largest highway concession and EPC companies in
India. The company entered the road developments pace with the award of Dhule
Bypass in 1997. Since then, the company has been continuously expanding its
portfolio – domiciles 25 BOT projects at
present of which 7 are NHAI projects and has presence in 6 states.. IDFC
Private equity invested approx. Rs. 100 crore in ABL in 2006. The company got
listed in 2010 with a market cap of Rs. 1,700 crore. As on June 30, 2012, its Order Book totalled
Rs. 4,600 crore. It is the first Indian infrastructure construction company to
receive the ISC certification for Quality (ISO 9001:2000), Environment (ISO
14001:2004) and Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSAS 18001:2007)
for Integrated Management Systems.
For more
information contact: Vyom Shrivastava, ABL Public Relations : 09850845251
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