Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal, in partnership with Centricus Asset Management, is planning to invest $10 billion in state-owned companies with “substantial growth opportunities,” Bloomberg reported.
The public sector units (PSUs) being eyed are those under the hammer as per India’s Rs 2.1 lakh crore ($29 billion) disinvestment plan and includes a $1.2 billion stake in oil refiner Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), it added.
According to Agarwal, “entrepreneurial dynamism in India can unlock incredible transformation in the public sector” and will play a “crucial role in ongoing industrialisation.” He said he had plans to help state companies accelerate into “private firms with professional management”.
Centricus co-founder and former Goldman Sachs partner Dalinc Ariburnu said given India’s size, PSU transformation “should result in significant capital resources” for these companies.
Agarwal’s plans with Centricus are for a 10-year life fund using private-equity to buy companies, boost their profitability and then exit, a source told the publication.
Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.
Founded in 2016, Centricus manages assets worth $28 billion.
Meanwhile Agarwal is known for his merger and acquisition (M&A) acumen, having successfully bought and fixed a metals and mining company under Vedanta Resources. He is worth $2.5 billion, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index (BBI).
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