Adani Group seals $ 10.5 billion Holcim deal to acquire Ambuja, ACC
Chairman of the Adani Group said, “Our move into the cement business is yet another validation of our belief in our nation’s growth story.” “Not only is India expected to remain one of the world’s largest demand-driven economies for several decades, India also continues to be the world’s second largest cement market and yet has less than half of the global average per capita cement consumption,” he said. In statistical comparison, Adani said, China’s cement consumption is over 7x that of India’s. “When these factors are combined with the several adjacencies of our existing businesses that include the Adani Group’s ports and logistics business, energy business, and real estate business, we believe that we will be able to build a uniquely integrated and differentiated business model and set ourselves up for significant capacity expansion,” said Gautam Adani. Having solidified its positions in sectors like port, power, and FMCG the diversified Adani group has been entering into new sectors and aspiring to be the undisputed challenger in its areas of operation. It recently floated a wholly-owned subsidiary for media business. By acquiring Holcim’s assets in India, the group has made its big bang entry into the cement sector which is expected to grow significantly in coming years on the back of rural housing and government’s strong focus on infrastructure development. “I am delighted that the Adani Group is acquiring our business in India to lead its next era of growth,” said Jan Jenisch, CEO of Holcim Limited. Ambuja Cements and ACC currently have a combined installed production capacity of 70 MTPA. The two companies are among the strongest brands in India with immense depth of manufacturing and supply chain infrastructure, represented by their 23 cement plants, 14 grinding stations, 80 ready-mix concrete plants and over 50,000 channel partners across India. Gautam Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group, recently joined the $100 billion elite club alongside world business leaders like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. Industrialist and RPG Group chairman Harsh Goenka who is known for his witty tweets and has 1.7 million followers on micro-blogging site Twitter wrote, ” ACC can now continue their name – Adani Cement Corporation!” Sajjan Jindal-led JSW and Aditya Birla Group which owns the country’s largest cement company Ultratech were reported to be in the race to buy out the two publicly-traded cement companies. (UNI)