Within days of acquiring controlling stake in Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering, Reliance Group chief Anil Ambani on Sunday said he will make it the country’s biggest defence manufacturer.
Addressing about 4,000 Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering workers during his maiden visit to the facility in Gujarat, he said he will “leave no stones unturned to make it India’s largest defence manufacturing company”.
Ambani along with top officials of the group also met Nikhil Gandhi of Pipavav Group at Pipavav, about 300 km from here. The development comes barely days after Reliance Infrastructure, in the biggest deal in the defence sector announced acquisition of controlling stake in Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering for up to Rs2,082.3 crore. Reliance Infra has said that it will buy 18 per cent stake from promoter group led by Nikhil Gandhi at Rs63 per share, aggregating to Rs819 crore.
The company will make an open offer for an additional 26 per cent shares at Rs66 apiece, totalling Rs1,263.3 crore. In case the open offer fails, Reliance Infra will acquire additional shares from promoters to ensure its shareholding is not less than 25.10 per cent.
Promoters at present hold 44.50 per cent stake in Pipavav Defence, which is reportedly looking at debt recast. The Anil Ambani Group, which has announced foray into defence manufacturing, will buy 13 crore equity shares from promoters together with sole management control. The acquisition would be done by Reliance Infrastructure, together with its wholly owned subsidiary Reliance Defence Systems Pvt ltd.