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JSW Infrastructure Ltd. has agreed to buy a 70.37 per cent stake in BSE-listed Navkar Corporation for INR 1,012 crore, or INR 95.61 per share. This acquisition will aid JSW Infrastructure’s expansion into logistics and value-added services, enhancing its port business and last-mile connectivity capabilities. The deal, conducted through JSW Port Logistics Pvt. Ltd., is subject to regulatory approvals and conditions.
The acquisition price of INR 95.61 per share is at a discount to Navkar Corporation’s closing share price on Thursday, which was INR 113.55 on the National Stock Exchange and INR 113.50 on the Bombay Stock Exchange, as per ET. This represents a premium of around 15.7 per cent to the market closing price.
“The acquisition aligns with the company’s strategy to pursue value-accretive organic and inorganic opportunities in the port and related infrastructure sector. The acquisition will result in the company’s foray into logistics and other value-added services. It will facilitate the business to offer improved port connectivity and streamlined supply chain solutions to its customers,” said JSW Infrastructure in a filing.
“The acquisition also marks a first step towards the Company’s long-term vision of building and scaling an efficient pan-India logistics network for last-mile connectivity. Further, it complements the growth strategy of increasing the Company’s share of port-related container cargo driven by India’s strong economic fundamentals,” it added.
Navkar Corporation operates three container freight stations (CFS) in Panvel, strategically located on the Mumbai-Pune highway, approximately 25 kilometres from Jawaharlal Nehru Port, India’s second-busiest container gateway. Two facilities have a combined capacity of 25,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) and 65,000 TEUs in Ajivali village, respectively. Somatane village has 425,000 TEUs, which also features a private freight terminal (PFT) with two railway sidings. These facilities enable efficient cargo handling and transportation, bolstering the region’s logistics capabilities.
“JSW Infrastructure is diversifying into the logistics business. The JSW Group is well entrenched in the steel business, it could make Navkar’s facilities as a huge base for steel exports, apart from handling general cargo and all. But, for the Group’s own steel business, that’s a huge base from where it could consolidate the cargo, do the custom clearance, and ship it out,” a port industry quoted TOI.