Shapoorji Pallonji planning to sell off solar, road assets?

New Delhi: With a view to pare the debt in its books, Shapoorji Pallonji Group is in believed to be in talks with potential investors for the sale of its solar and road assets by March 2020, sources said. The move will enable the real estate major to reduce its debt by around Rs 4,000 crores ($558 million). The group is also considering bringing in investors for its ports business.

Blame the slowdown!

The 154-year-old conglomerate had its unlisted flagship firm Shapoorji Pallonji & Co. and some units downgraded on the basis of core sector slowdown. It is, therefore, considering the sale to augment its balance sheet and credit ratings as the real estate sector and the banking sector reel under a slowdown.

The backdrop

The real estate sector has been under pressure with non-performing assets (NPAs) and bad loans piling up. This has also led to a thinning in credit lines to the sector from banks. Shapoorji Pallonji, which seems to be better-positioned than its peers, recorded total revenue of around Rs 50,000 crore ($7 billion).