Exclusive: Piramal Enterprises to sell 15-20 pct stake in pharma biz, sources say

In a major development, Piramal Enterprises Limited (PEL) is planning to unlock its pharma business by selling 15-20 per cent in the business. The company is planning to raise Rs 3500- Rs 4500 cr through the stake sale. Zee Business Executive Editor Swati Khandelwal has an exclusive report on this.

Quoting sources, Khandelwal said that the company had invited bids and the talks on this are now in the final stages. The announcement is likely to come in this week, she further said. The board is likely to meet today and some decision may be taken on this regard, Khandelwal said.

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#ZBizExclusive | बड़ी खबर! फार्मा बिजनेस में 15-20% हिस्सा बेचेगी पीरामल एंटरप्राइजेज... KKR, TA एसोसिएट्स समेत कार्लाइल हिस्सा खरीद की दौड़ में शामिल: सूत्र

> ₹3500-₹4500 करोड़ में डील संभव, जल्द होगा ऐलान#PiramalEnterprises @AnilSinghvi_ @SwatiKJain pic.twitter.com/3ntC3KZ5Tq

— Zee Business (@ZeeBusiness) June 23, 2020

 Private Equity firms Carlyle, KKR and TA Associates have expressed interest, she said. Carlyle is the front runner and has been very aggressive in its approach, she said adding that PEL has received binding offers from other players too.

The bids have already come and the negotiations are on, on the share-purchase agreement, the Executive Editor said.  

The Piramal Group is a diversified global business conglomerate with presence in sectors including financial services, healthcare and pharma.

The PEL’s pharma business is getting good valuations. As per the estimates, the pharma business of PEL, alone, is being valued at Rs 20,000 cr, she said. 

The money that will come from this deal will be used to deleverage the balance sheet which has been under big stress over many months now. There are also plans to list the pharma business to enable an exit plan for the financial investor, she said.

When PE players enter into a deal, one of the concerns for them is how to exit from the deal. Listing the business will help the PE firm to make an exit.

The company has been in the news of late with some announcements including the purchase of a facility in the US.

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On this deal, Zee Business Managing Editor Anil Singhvi said that the development was big for the company as well as the sector. The Managing Editor said that the news of the stake sale has been doing the rounds for a while and the stock price has appreciated because of the news.