Fairfax India Holdings Corp, part of Canadian billionaire Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Holdings, said it would invest $300 million in privately held Indian petrochemical company Sanmar Chemicals Group through a combination of equity and fixed-income securities.
Fairfax India will have a 30 per cent equity ownership in Sanmar following the investment, the company said on Friday.
Reuters had earlier reported that Fairfax India is close to acquiring a minority stake in Sanmar, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Fairfax India will fund an initial tranche of $250 million, while a second tranche of $50 million will come from Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd or another investor, the company said. The investment in Sanmar would be the latest in a string of Fairfax investments in the country this year. Indian-born Watsa, whose main investment firm is Fairfax Financial Holdings, has previously said he is enthused about India’s growth prospects due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s economic reform agenda.