HAZEL MERCANTILE HIGHEST BIDDER FOR RELIANCE NAVAL

Mumbai-based Hazel Mercantile has emerged as the highest bidder for Reliance Naval and Engineering (RNEL) with a bid of about ~2,100 crore, pipping Naveen Jindal group and GMS of Dubai by a huge margin. While the Naveen Jindal group offered about ~400 crore for the company, GMS of Dubai made an even lower bid of ~200 crore. The committee of creditors, which met on Wednesday, found all the three bidders legally compliant and will start negotiating to get the better offer.

Mumbai-based Hazel Mercantile has emerged as the highest bidder for Reliance Naval and Engineering Ltd (RNEL) with a bid of about ~2,100 crore – pipping Naveen Jindal group and GMS of Dubai by a huge margin.

While Naveen Jindal group offered about ~400 crore for the company, GMS of Dubai made an even lower bid of

~200 crore. The committee of creditors, which met here on Wednesday, found all three bidders legally compliant and will start negotiating to get the better offer.

Voting on the bids will be held

Naveen group offered Jindal about ~400 crore, while GMS of Dubai made a bid of ~200 crore

at a later date after negotiations with all parties to sweeten the bids are over, said a source.

Reliance Naval and Engineering was sent for debt resolution after the company defaulted on its principal debt worth ~8,000 crore. The debt could have been much lower had the company fulfilled its orders with the Indian Navy, Coast Guard and ONGC, said a lender close to the transaction.

ONGC had placed an order for 12 Offshore Vessels (OSVS) in 2009-10. Of this, only seven OSVS were delivered till 201516. ONGC then cancelled the order and invoked ail the bank guarantees in fiscal 2018-19 — leading to additional financial burden. An arbitration petition filed by the company against ONGC is pending.

The company was sent for debt resolution in January last year by IDBI Bank and since then the company is facing bankruptcy proceedings. The total amount claimed by banks from the former Anil Ambani group company including interest is ~12,429 crore.