Anil Ambani-led Group Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) has announced the sale of its erstwhile headquarters (HQ) in Mumbai’s Santacruz to YES Bank for Rs 1,200 crore. The proceeds from the sale will be utilised to repay debt of the private lender, the company said in an exchange filing on Thursday. YES Bank will convert the building into its corporate head office, reports say.
With the latest sale, Reliance infrastructure limited has reduced its debt exposure by 50 per cent in the last 90 days. Rinfra has closed three major transactions in the last 90 days namely sale of road assets — Delhi Agra Toll Road, Transmission Asset-Parbati Koldam Transmission Company limited and sale of Reliance Centre, Santacruz. After this sale, Yes Bank’s exposure to Reliance Infrastructure has come down to Rs 2,000 crore. The company aims to be debt free in 2021.
Once the HQ of Anil Ambani, Reliance Centre is a high-tech office building with over 695,000 square feet area on a plot of 15,514-square metre land. The property, earlier owned by Kolkata-based ICI, came into the Ambani family’s fold when the then undivided Reliance Industries took over businesses of ICI in the early 1990s.
Last month, Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials to clarify on the Group’s exposure to Yes Bank and reiterated that all loans to the company with the bank are “fully secured”. In a statement issued after the questioning, the Reliance Group said, “Anil Ambani reiterated that the Reliance Group”s entire exposure to Yes Bank is fully secured and transacted in the ordinary course of business.”
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“All transactions between the Reliance Group and Yes Bank are in compliance with the law and financial regulations,” the statement read. RInfra is a major player in providing Engineering and Construction (E&C) services for developing power, infrastructure, metro and road projects.
