Adani Group to invest $25-30 bn after Australian acquisition

The Adani Group, after acquiring Australian firm Linc Energy Ltd's Galilee coal tenement, plans to invest $25-30 billion (Rs 1.2-1.4 lakh crore) in its businesses over the next seven years, chairman Gautam Adani said on Wednesday.

These investments will be made in a slew of projects involving coal mine acquisitions, cement manufacturing, shipping, port construction, overseas farming and power generation among others, he told the Mint newspaper in an interview.

''This investment will be made in all our businesses. We have a stated vision. By 2020, we should have port-handling capacity of more than 200 million tonnes (mt) of cargo annually, 20,000MW of commissioned power generation capacity and 200 mt per annum of coal mining capacity in India and overseas,'' Adani said.

The Adani Group includes Mundra Port and Special Economic Zone Ltd (MPSEZ), Adani Power Ltd and Adani Enterprises Ltd. MPSEZ and Adani Enterprises together registered a net profit of Rs1,595 crore on a turnover of Rs27,418.51 crore in 2009-10.

In a related development, the group plans to invest $1 billion to develop a new coal terminal at Dudgeon Point in Australia with an annual capacity of 30-60 mt. As part of its plans to be present across the power generation value chain, from owning coal mines to shipping to controlling fuel costs, the firm is looking at acquiring other coal mines in Australia, Africa and Indonesia, and owns 20 ships to have greater control of the freight logistics.

''We have moved to acquire mines globally, and as part of our strategy to enhance our position in the power generating business, we are continuously evaluating 8-10 coal mine assets,'' Adani said.

The country's biggest coal trader imported 30 mt of coal in 2009-10 and plans to import 35 mt this fiscal. The company sources coal from Africa and Indonesia.Adani has its own mines in Indonesia, apart from which the group has long-term supply and offtake obligations with other mines.