Adani-owned Ambuja Cements to acquire majority stake in Sanghi

Ambuja Cements has reached a deal to acquire a majority stake in operations of Sanghi Industries, two sources with direct knowledge said, a transaction that will add heft to cement operations of billionaire Gautam Adani's firm. The deal by Ambuja is likely to be announced as soon as Wednesday, the sources said, declining to be named because the decision is not public. They did not share the exact stake percentage.

One of the sources said the deal was done by considering Sanghi's enterprise value at 60 billion rupees ($729 million). India's Economic Times last week reported that Adani was among those leading the race to acquire Sanghi, which was being appraised at that enterprise value.

Adani Group did not respond to a request for comment. Sanghi Cement declined to comment.

Adani is India's second-largest cement producer, behind UltraTech Cement (ULTC.NS). It owns Ambuja and its subsidiary ACC Ltd, which have a capacity to produce more than 65 million tonnes with more than a dozen manufacturing plants across India.

Sanghi is one of the leading cement manufacturers from Gujarat state in western India. It has a production capacity of 6.1 million metric tonnes per annum, its website says.

A spokesperson for the Adani Group told Reuters in June that cement was a key focus area and there were plans to explore multiple greenfield opportunities.