IL&FS has received the nod to sell Jorbat Shillong Expressway Limited (JSEL) to Sekura Road Limited (SRL). Retired Justice DK Jain, overseeing the IL&FS resolution and divestment process, granted the approval for the sale of its infrastructure finance business to Sekura, which had bid ₹916 crore for acquiring 100 per cent stake in JSEL. Sekura Roads Limited is backed by Edelweiss Infrastructure Yield Plus fund (EIYP), one of India’s largest Infrastructure Category-I Alternative Investment Funds.

JSEL is a wholly-owned subsidiary of IL&FS Transportation Networks India Limited (ITNL). Jain has granted approval for the sale on condition that IL&FS place the proposal before NCLT for its approval. Further, he has directed IL&FS to seek approval from NHAI to complete the sale. The Committee of Creditors of both ITNL and JSEL have approved the sale. The proceeds of the sale will be distributed in accordance with the resolution framework approved by NCLT.

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If the sale goes through, it will address around ₹1,600 crore debt of IL&FS, the company said. In its latest progress report, IL&FS said that it has resolved ₹19,100 crore of the group’s debt. It has around ₹99,000 crore in total debt. So far, IL&FS has sold off the education business, Schoolnet India Ltd, to Career Point Publications Pvt Ltd (CPPPL). Jain approved the Schoolnet India sale on condition that IL&FS will place the proposal before NCLT for approval and the realised amount would be kept in an escrow account. This would subsequently be disbursed in accordance with the directions of the NCLT and the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).

Additionally, it sold off its wind energy business to Japanese company ORIX and repaid debt in the green category companies. In November, IL&FS said that a buyer had submitted a binding offer for acquiring IL&FS Energy Development Company Limited (IEDCL), its energy advisory subsidiary business, as a going concern.

Also read: Vineet Nayyar resigns as Executive Vice-Chairman of IL&FS Group

The Uday Kotak-led board, in its progress report, reiterated that its target of addressing ₹50,000 crore of the group’s bad debt by March 2021, is on track, despite some hiccups caused by the pandemic, which has delayed the resolution.

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