JPMorgan fund to invest $400 mln in India's SKIL
A fund managed by JPMorgan Chase & Co has agreed to invest about $400 million in India's SKIL Infrastructure for a stake of just under 20 percent, two sources with direct knowledge of the development told Reuters.
SKIL, which controls ship-builder Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Ltd and has a 21 percent stake in Everonn Education , will use the funds to pare debt and add scale to its operations, one of the sources said.
Part of the funds will be used by SKIL to repay loans it took to buy about 20 percent of Pipavav from construction firm Punj Lloyd last year, the source said, adding SKIL will also invest in defence and education.
As of March 31, SKIL had total debt of 13.51 billion rupees ($285 million), excluding vehicle loans.
In June, it had filed papers for an initial public offering to raise up to 11.25 billion rupees and is awaiting approval from the regulator.
SKIL is primarily an infrastructure development company, whose interests include special economic zones, free zones and logistics.
Both sources declined to be identified because the deal has not yet been announced. A potential deal was reported in June by India's Economic Times newspaper.
Officials at SKIL and JPMorgan were not immediately available for comment.
Private equity investments in India grew 21.6 percent to $3.3 billion in the first half of this year, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Such investments in infrastructure had hit $4 billion last year from about $1 billion in 2006, Bain & Company said a recent report, predicting activity could grow 25-50 percent a year over the next three years.
Pipavav Defence said on Monday it had formed an equal joint venture with state-run Mazagon Dock to build submarines and warships, which will give a major fillip to the private sector in India's lucrative defence market.
SKIL, which controls ship-builder Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Ltd and has a 21 percent stake in Everonn Education , will use the funds to pare debt and add scale to its operations, one of the sources said.
Part of the funds will be used by SKIL to repay loans it took to buy about 20 percent of Pipavav from construction firm Punj Lloyd last year, the source said, adding SKIL will also invest in defence and education.
As of March 31, SKIL had total debt of 13.51 billion rupees ($285 million), excluding vehicle loans.
In June, it had filed papers for an initial public offering to raise up to 11.25 billion rupees and is awaiting approval from the regulator.
SKIL is primarily an infrastructure development company, whose interests include special economic zones, free zones and logistics.
Both sources declined to be identified because the deal has not yet been announced. A potential deal was reported in June by India's Economic Times newspaper.
Officials at SKIL and JPMorgan were not immediately available for comment.
Private equity investments in India grew 21.6 percent to $3.3 billion in the first half of this year, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Such investments in infrastructure had hit $4 billion last year from about $1 billion in 2006, Bain & Company said a recent report, predicting activity could grow 25-50 percent a year over the next three years.
Pipavav Defence said on Monday it had formed an equal joint venture with state-run Mazagon Dock to build submarines and warships, which will give a major fillip to the private sector in India's lucrative defence market.