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M. Ramesh

To invest Rs 100 crore over the next two years in expansion

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Chennai Jan. 20 The Rs 100-crore Vasan Healthcare group of Tiruchi is likely to take over Sea Horse Hospitals Ltd, which runs a hospital of the same name in Tiruchi, the group's Chairman, Dr A.M. Arun, confirmed to Business Line on Saturday.

Answering a question as to whether the group was doing a `due diligence' for Sea Horse, Dr Arun said the group had made an offer. He said he expected the Sea Horse Hospital to come into the group's fold.

While Dr Arun declined to disclose the offer price, sources in the Tiruchirapalli industry circles said it could be between Rs 15 crore and Rs 20 crore.

Holdings

The promoters — the family and a holding company set up by Dr A.K. Gandhi — hold close to 34 per cent of the Rs 12.5 crore equity of Sea Horse Hospitals Ltd. The rest is widely disbursed, with no shareholder having over 1 per cent stake in the company.

In the April-September period of 2006-07, Sea Horse Hospitals reported a turnover of Rs 98 lakh (against Rs 1.4 crore in the same period the previous year) and a net loss of Rs 70 lakh (Rs 86 lakh).

In the previous full year 2005-06, the company had reported a turnover of Rs 2.8 crore and a net loss of Rs 18 lakh.

Meanwhile, Vasan Health Care has said that it would invest Rs 100 crore over the next two years in expanding its presence.

Today, the group runs a pharmacy chain of nine outlets, 10 eye hospitals and three multi-speciality hospitals in Tiruchi. Before December 2007, the group intends to add 16 more eye hospitals and 30 pharma outlets, Dr Arun said. He expects the group's turnover to touch Rs 250 crore by the end of March 2008.

On the cards is a plan to merge all the entities of the group into one corporate structure, which would perhaps be called `Vasan Healthcare Ltd'. Today, the pharmacies, eye hospitals and multi-speciality hospitals are under different legal entities. Also on the anvil is a plan to come out with a public issue, which Dr Arun says could happen within 18 months.

More Stories on : Mergers & Acquisitions | Medical Institutions & Hospitals

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