Adani arm completes buy of RInfra’s western region transmission assets

Anil Ambani-led Reliance Infrastructure Ltd (RInfra) has announced completing the sale of its Western Region System Strengthening Scheme (WRSSS) transmission undertakings to Adani Transmission Ltd (ATL) for ₹1,000 crore.

The assets under transaction are Western Region Transmission Maharashtra project comprising 2,089 circuit km (Ckm) of transmission lines and Western Region Transmission Gujarat project comprising 974 Ckm of transmission line. With this acquisition, the cumulative network of ATL will reach around 11,350 Ckm of which approximately 9,000 Ckm are under operation (including 458 Ckm under process of acquisition) and approximately 2,350 Ckm under various stages of construction, the company said in a statement.

Pact inked RInfra and ATL had signed a binding term-sheet agreement for the three operational transmission projects —WRSSS B, WRSSS C and Parbati Koldam Transmission Company Ltd (PKTCL), a joint venture company of RInfra and Power Grid Corporation of India where Rinfra holds 74 per cent, in December last. The approvals for sale of RInfra’s stake in PKTCL, which is valued at another ₹1,000 crore, are still in the process.

Earlier this month, RInfra and ATL had also entered the period of exclusivity for RInfra's flagship Mumbai distribution business valued at around ₹10,000-13,000 crore.

The agreement for exclusive talks was signed till January 15, 2018 while the proposed deal is subject to confirmatory diligence, definitive documentation and customary approvals.

If the deal goes through, it will help ATL make its foray into the distribution space while allowing RInfra to reduce its ₹20,000-debt significantly.

RInfra has been operating its distribution business in Mumbai for the last nine years and has a licence valid till August 2036. The business serves about 3 million customers and is considered to be one of India’s largest private sector integrated power utilities.