Adani Acquires Orient Cement at Rs 8,100 Crore Equity Value

New Delhi / October 22, 2024: Ambuja Cements, the cement and building material company of Adani Cement and part of the diversified Adani Group, on Wednesday announced the signing of a binding agreement for the acquisition of Orient Cement Ltd (OCL) at an equity value of Rs. 8,100 crore. Ambuja will acquire 46.8% shares of OCL from its current promoters and certain public shareholders. The acquisition will be fully funded through internal accruals, the company said in a statement. 

“This timed acquisition marks another significant step forward in Ambuja Cements’ accelerated growth journey, increasing cement capacity by 30 MTPA within two years of Ambuja’s acquisition,” said Karan Adani, Director of Ambuja Cements. 

“By acquiring OCL, Ambuja is poised to reach 100 MTPA cement capacity in FY 25. The acquisition will help to expand Adani Cement’s presence in core markets and improve its pan-India market share by 2%. OCL’s assets are highly efficient, equipped with railway sidings and well supported by captive power plants, renewable energy, WHRS and AFR facilities. OCL’s strategic locations, high-quality limestone reserves and requisite statutory approvals present an opportunity to increase cement capacity in the near term to 16.6 MTPA,” he added. 

CK Birla, Chairman of Orient Cement and the CK Birla Group, said, “The CK Birla Group is continuously reallocating capital to sharpen its focus on consumer centric, technology driven and service-based businesses. I take pride in Orient Cement’s impressive track record of building premium brands and maintaining a leading market share in the geographies it operates in. We are confident that the Adani Group, with its strong focus on cement and infrastructure, is the ideal new owner to drive continued growth at Orient Cement for our people and stakeholders”.

Amita Birla, Co-Chairman, CK Birla Group, added, “Orient Cement has a strong market presence, with sustainability initiatives, particularly in renewable energy, being a significant part of its DNA. I am convinced that Ambuja Cements is the right home for all our colleagues at Orient Cement, as well as our customers.”

OCL has recently commissioned a WHRS in Chittapur IU and is in the final stage of commissioning 16 MW solar in Chittapur and 3.7 MW solar in Jalgaon. OCL’s existing dealers will move to Adani Cement’s market network, creating synergies. Ambuja plans to optimize OCL’s overall capacity utilization to enhance its cost and competitiveness and improve its operating performance while leveraging the synergies inherent in the existing cement business, the statement added.