IndiGrid to buy 74% stake in Parbati Koldam Transmission

IndiGrid will acquire 74 per cent shareholding and management control of Parbati Koldam Transmission Company Limited (PKTCL).

PKTCL is a joint venture between Reliance Infrastructure Limited (74 per cent stake) and Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL) (26 per cent stake). The enterprise value for acquiring 100 per cent is ₹900 crore — inclusive of cash reserves and normalised tariff receivables — subject to adjustments on account of movement in cash, deviation in outstanding debt, tariff receivables, assets and liabilities outstanding, IndiGrid said. KKR-affiliated Esoteric II is the sponsor of IndiGrid Trust, which owns 23 per cent stake in the investment trust. Separately, KKR also owns 60 per cent stake in Sterlite Investment Managers Ltd.

PKTCL operates 458 circuit km of transmission lines constituting an inter-State transmission system for evacuation of power from the Parbati-II HEP, implemented by NHPC Limited, and Koldam HEP, implemented by NTPC Limited. The acquisition is subject to the terms of share purchase and other definitive agreements and requisite regulatory and other relevant approvals, IndiGrid said.

Power investments

The acquisition of an aforesaid power transmission asset is in line with IndiGrid’s investment strategy as provided in the Trust Deed, with a focus to ensure stable distribution to unit-holders by owning assets with long-term contracts, the company said. As of September, IndiGrid has distributed ₹39.56 per unit to its investors over the last 14 quarters since its listing, which translates to a total return of 42 per cent.

Recently, IndiGrid acquired power transmission line operator’s Jhajjar KT Transco Pvt Ltd assets from Kalpataru Power Transmission Ltd and Techno Electric & Engineering Company for ₹310 crore. Additionally, it acquired assets of Gurgaon Palwal Transmission Limited (GPTL) from Sterlite Power for ₹1,080 crore. Also, it has entered into an exclusive framework agreement with Sterlite Power to acquire three projects worth ₹6,500 crore, as and when they are commissioned.

In FY20, IndiGrid raised ₹2,510 crore by way of preferential share issue, which was subscribed by KKR and GIC amongst other investors. At the end of September, IndiGrid’s assets under management were ₹13,900 crore. Before this acquisition, IndiGrid owned 11 operating projects consisting of 28 transmission lines with more than 6,280 ckt km in length and 9 substations with 11,460-MVA transformation capacity.