Adani Group to strengthen foothold in realty space, in talks to buy Emaar’s India business

Emaar Properties entered the Indian real estate market in 2005 in partnership with India’s MGF Development. It has a large portfolio of residential and commercial spaces across Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Mohali, Lucknow, Indore and Jaipur

New Delhi: Billionaire Gautam Adani’s group is in advanced talks to acquire real estate company Emaar India for an enterprise value of around $1.4-1.5 billion as it looks to expand its property business, according to sources.

Dubai-based Emaar Properties entered the Indian real estate market in 2005 in partnership with India’s MGF Development and invested Rs 8,500 crore through the joint venture firm Emaar MGF Land.

---

In April 2016, Emaar Properties decided to end the joint venture through a demerger process. Emaar India has a large portfolio of residential and commercial spaces across Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Mohali, Lucknow, Indore and Jaipur.

According to sources, the talks between Dubai-based Emaar Properties and Adani Group are in an advanced stage. Adani Group and Emaar India declined to comment.

In January this year, Emaar Properties said, “The company would like to confirm that it is currently in discussion with a few groups in India, including Adani Group, for a potential sale of a stake in Emaar India. The valuation and the other terms of a potential transaction are not finalised”.

Sources said that Emaar Properties is looking to sell stake in the Indian entity but the extent of dilution in shareholding is not decided yet.

The Adani Group is active in the Indian real estate market through its unlisted entities Adani Realty and Adani Properties. Adani Realty has been developing many projects across major cities in India. The group has also bagged redevelopment projects, including Dharavi which is one of Asia’s largest slums in Mumbai.

After the Dharavi slum redevelopment project, the Adani group emerged as the highest bidder for the Rs 36,000 crore redevelopment of Motilal Nagar in Mumbai. Motilal Nagar I, II & III is one of Mumbai’s biggest housing redevelopment projects, covering 143 acres in Goregaon (W).

Adani Properties Pvt Ltd (APPL) emerged as the highest bidder. Letter of Allotment (LoA) will be issued in due course.

Emaar Properties PJSC, listed on the Dubai Financial Market, is a global property developer and provider of premium lifestyles, with a significant presence in the Middle East, North Africa, and Asia.

One of the world’s largest real estate companies, Emaar has a land bank of around 1.7 billion sq ft in the UAE and key international markets. Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall are among the major projects developed by Emaar Properties.