State-run construction major NBCCNSE 2.08 % is open to acquiring more distressed assets in the real estate sector, provided there are no corporate governance issues, chairman Anoop Kumar Mittal has said. NBCC has already bid for Jaypee InfratechNSE -3.92 %, which is being resolved through the corporate insolvency process.
“There are a few other projects where we have been approached. We are examining the commercial viability but we won’t take up projects where there are corporate governance issues,” Mittal said, refusing to name the projects the firm is interested in.
NBCC has been directed by the Supreme Court to complete the stalled projects of Amrapali Group on the project management consultancy (PMC) model. After surveying all the projects of the group, the developer had informed the court that it would require Rs 8,500 crore to complete them.
According to an executive aware of the developments, some banks have approached the state-run firm to take over assets of companies whose promoters are unable to service their loans.
“It may be the case that NBCC would take on other projects depending on how the negotiations go in case of Jaypee Infratech,” said the executive quoted above.
Jaypee Infratech has an outstanding debt of about Rs 9,800 crore Some bankers said NBCC has offered to set up a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for acquiring a majority stake in the corporate debtor.
“It (NBCC) has offered to pump upfront amount of Rs 500 crore (part equity and part debt) within 90 days of the approval date,” said a bank executive.
The resolution plan offered by NBCC also proposes to give 1,400 acres, worth about Rs 3,000 crore, as well as the Yamuna Expressway highway to the lenders.
“They have proposed that banks can raise about Rs 2,000 crore against the Expressway,” he added.
In 2017, the NCLT had admitted the application of an IDBI Bank-led consortium seeking resolution of Jaypee Infratech’s debt under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
NBCC expects to have an order book of Rs 95,000 crore. It recently acquired another state-run firm Hospital Services Consultancy Corporation (HSCC) for Rs 285 crore.
Source: Economic Times