5 firms show interest in taking over fund-starved Jaypee Infra
NEW DELHI: Five companies — NBCC, Kotak Investment, L&T Infrastructure, Singapore-based Cube Highways and Suraksha group — have shown an interest in taking over debt-ridden Jaypee Infratech, which is facing bankruptcy proceedings.
Jaypee Infratech’s Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) Anuj Jain had, in October, begun a fresh initiative to revive the company on the National Company Law Tribunal’s (NCLT) direction, after lenders rejected Suraksha group’s ₹7,000 crore bid .
Jain had invited an Expression of Interest (EOI) from companies to revive Jaypee Infratech Ltd (JIL), which has many housing projects that are stuck in Noida and Greater Noida.
The IRP has received five Eois from interested parties, JIL has stated.
Of the five companies, L&T Infrastructure Development Projects is only interested in the 165km Yamuna Expressway, and not for the development of land parcels attached to the expressway that belong to JIL.
In a filing to BSE Tuesday, state-owned NBCC said it had submitted the EOI for a resolution plan for JIL and the company had been provisionally shortlisted by JIL’S IRP as a prospective resolution applicant.
Suraksha Asset Reconstruction has shown an interest, along with its entities Lakshdeep Investments and Finance and Suraksha Realty.
Last year, the NCLT had admitted an application by an IDBI Bank-led consortium, seeking resolution for JIL under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
The tribunal had appointed Jain as IRP to mange the company’s business.
He later invited bids from investors interested in acquiring JIL and completing the stuck real estate projects in Noida and Greater Noida.
Consequently, Lakshdeep had emerged as a front runner to acquire JIL. However, in May this year, JIL’S lenders rejected the ₹7,350 crore bid by Lakshdeep as they found it inadequate.
JIL has an outstanding debt of nearly ₹9,800 crore, of which ₹4,334 crore is owed to IDBI. Other lenders are the IIFCL, LIC, SBI, Corporation Bank, Syndicate Bank, Bank Of Maharashtra, ICICI Bank, Union Bank, IFCI, J&K Bank, Axis Bank and Srei Equipment Finance.