Vedanta Ltd. will complete its long-awaited demerger into five separate listed units in early April, a move designed to unlock value and tackle debt that's weighed on Chairman Anil Agarwal for years.
The Vedanta demerger will transform the Mumbai-listed company into a series of pureplay companies spanning aluminium, zinc, oil and gas, steel, and power, Agarwal told the Financial Times, giving them a “free hand to grow”. He anticipates a significant rerating of the group’s assets.
Under the new arrangement, a private parent firm controlled by the London-based billionaire will retain roughly 50% stake in each of the new units.
The move follows a period of friction with the Indian government, which had previously opposed the break-up over concerns it might complicate the recovery of state-held interests.
Vedanta successfully cleared those legal hurdles late last year, paving the way for the mid-May listing of the four demerged units, according to Chief Financial Officer Ajay Goel.
