KIMS Hospitals Group, the Hyderabad-based multi-speciality healthcare chain, has firmed up plans to expand into Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharastra in the next couple of years.

With a turnover of Rs 925 crore for fiscal 2019, combined bed strength of 4000 in 10 hospitals, as well as one medical college in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana respectively, KIMS will add two ‘greenfield’ hospitals of 250 bed strength each in Hyderabad and Rajahmundry.

“This will take the total bed strength to 4500 in the two states. Simultaneously, efforts have been stepped up to expand footprint in Eastern and Central India first,” said Abhinay Bollineni, the new Chief Executive Officer.

In Odisha, the KIMS Group has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Government to develop nearly five hospitals through joint venture, on a public-private-partnership model. “We have won bids for 3 hospitals, with the biggest, flagship one of 800 beds in Bhubaneswar,” Abhinay told BusinessLine .

As per the MoU, the KIMS will bring in all the medical, technical and healthcare expertise and manage the hospitals, which will be built by the State Government. The financial closure is expected by end of 2019 and work will begin in fiscal 2020, he said.

Bringing in General Atlantic

KIMS has a huge presence in Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam, the neighbouring districts of Odisha with nearly 1500 bedded hospital strength. Also, the hospital has doctors, who have been providing consultancy healthcare in Odisha. Therefore, it would be a natural extension of healthcare, Abhinay says.

The KIMS Group, started by cardiothoracic surgeon B Bhaskar Rao and a group of doctors in 2004, brought in General Atlantic, a growth equity firm with over $130 million (about Rs 880 crore) in 2018. Significant part of the 37 per cent equity dilution has been used to provide exit to some of the existing shareholders or investors.

The original promoters of KIMS hold over 60 percent now. In addition to utilising the proceeds of the investment to beef up facilities, funds would be raised through a combination of internal accruals and debt to finance the expansion, Abhinay, son of Bhaskar Rao, the main promoter, and MD.

The average costs of creating a bed will be around Rs 35-40 lakh and the Group has ambitions of doubling its strength from the present 4500 in the next decade, for which it has drawn up plans, said Abhinay, a doctor himself, who had joined the Group in 2012 as Executive assistant to the MD.

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