Coromandel acquires additional 7% stake in drone manufacturing company Dhaksha

Coromandel will invest Rs 150 crores through fresh issue of shares to increase its overall shareholding in Dhaksha to 58%

Coromandel International Limited on 13 May announced that acquiring an additional 7 percent stake in Chennai-based drone manufacturing company Dhaksha Unmanned Systems Private Limited through its wholly owned subsidiary Coromandel Technology Limited (CTL).

Coromandel will invest Rs 150 crore through a fresh issue of shares to increase its overall shareholding in Dhaksha to 58 percent.  Dhaksha, incorporated in 2019 and headquartered in Chennai, in an India drone space player, providing a complete range of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) technology solutions across agriculture, defence, surveillance and enterprise applications. It also offers remote pilot training services (RPTO) and has trained several drone pilots to date.

In the last year, Dhaksha has bagged several orders from defence and agri input companies and its current order book stands at Rs 265 crore. The company has recently expanded its production capacity with a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility established on the outskirts of Chennai.

"The proceeds from this fund-raise will help Dhaksha in strengthening its research & development efforts, cater to servicing large orders and meeting its working capital needs," the company said in a statement.

Commenting on the investment in Dhaksha, Arun Alagappan, Executive Chairman, Coromandel International Ltd, said “Coromandel has been associated with Dhaksha right from its early startup stage and has been supporting the company on talent acquisition, R&D, and production scale-up... This investment in Dhaksha aligns with Coromandel’s vision of diversifying in technology spaces and promoting technology adoption across various spheres.”