Kerala has put MSC Group’s planned $1.397bn entry into Adani Vizhinjam Port Private Limited under scrutiny, saying Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd did not seek state approval before agreeing to sell a 49% interest in the Vizhinjam port concessionaire, according to Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan.
The deal would bring MSC Group’s terminal arm, Terminal Investment Limited, into AVPPL alongside APSEZ, which would retain 51% of the company and a majority of board seats. APSEZ signed the share purchase and subscription agreement on 29 June with Mundi Limited, a subsidiary of TiL.
The transaction values AVPPL at $2.85bn and remains subject to customary and regulatory approvals. TiL’s commitment comprises $539m for the 49% stake and $858m linked to completion of the port expansion by December 2028.
The Vizhinjam concession agreement bars the concessionaire from allowing a change in ownership without prior approval from the authority. It treats an acquisition of 25% or more of equity, or control of the board, as a change in ownership requiring prior approval on national security and public interest grounds.
The issue was also raised in the Kerala assembly by opposition leader Pinarayi Vijayan, who questioned whether a combination of a major liner operator and port operator could affect competition, port development and trade interests.
Vizhinjam, near Thiruvananthapuram, was commissioned in December 2024 with 1.6m TEU of capacity. APSEZ plans to expand capacity to 5.7m TEU by December 2028. The port is about 10 nautical miles from the East-West shipping route linking Europe, the Persian Gulf and the Far East. Adani Ports shares fell as much as 1% on Friday and were last down 0.2% in afternoon trade, after gaining about 6% over the previous three sessions.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd is an Indian port and logistics company within the Adani Group.
MSC Group is a privately owned Geneva-based transport and logistics group founded by Gianluigi Aponte in 1970.