Adani Group In Discussion With International Banks for Refinancing $3.8 Billion in Loans
As reported by persons familiar with the ongoing discussions, the Adani Group is in talks with at least five new foreign banks to refinance $3.8 billion in loans of varied maturities taken for the acquisition of ACC Limited and Ambuja Cement last year.
According to these sources, the majority of Adani's existing lenders will join in the refinancing round, including the lead banks - Standard Chartered, Barclays, and Deutsche Bank. The group has also begun conversations with two Taiwanese banks and a Malaysian bank, among others, to enlarge the consortium of lenders to syndicate the aforementioned loan, which will likely require a three-year payment extension.
"The meetings with lenders are currently underway, and the group is targeting mid-July to stitch up a loan agreement with the consortium," said a person familiar with the discussions.
As things stand, the present lenders are generally willing to renegotiate the loan terms but have requested the group to bring in other lenders to prevent concentration risk for the existing lenders, according to the individual. "Bringing in new lenders will also boost the group's creditworthiness perception, especially when the group taps overseas bond markets later this year," a second person familiar with the conversation said.