Ballarpur Ind postpones stake sale in Malaysian arm

Ballarpur Industries on Wednesday said the sale of its stake in step-down subsidiary Sabah Forest Industries Sdn Bhd, Malaysia, to Pandawa Sakti (Sabah) Sdn Bhd has been delayed till March 31. The company, in a regulatory filing, said it has extended the stake sale due to a request made by the acquirer. Ballarpur Industries’ arm Ballarpur Paper Holdings BV had in September signed a share sale agreement with Malaysia’s Pandawa Sakti for selling 98.08 per cent stake in Sabah Forest Industries for $500 million. The company plans to use the proceeds from the Sabah Forest stake sale to pare debt in some subsidiaries. The delay in stake sale notwithstanding, a surety bond worth $22.50 million issued by Pandawa Sakti to Ballarpur Paper Holdings continues to remain valid, Ballarpur Industries said. Shares of Ballarpur Industries were up 1.2 per cent at ₹12.35 on the National Stock Exchange.