By Narayanan Somasundaram and Anurag Joshi
MUMBAI, June 18 (Reuters) - India's Essar group plans to raise $900 million via a 2-½ year loan, by pledging a part of its stake in the country's third-biggest mobile firm, Vodafone Essar, two sources with direct knowledge of the deal, said.
SBI Capital Markets, a unit of top lender State Bank of India , and Barclays Capital are in the race to arrange the funds and could end up sharing the deal, the banking sources said, declining to be named.
Both the lenders are in discussions with Essar at a rate of below 11 percent, they said, adding the funds could be arranged in the next two weeks.
'We have got a commitment for a majority of the required funds from institutional investors and banks,' said one source, who is directly involved in the deal.
'They are looking at 2-½ year money and we are offering a range of 10.0-10.5 percent,' the second source said.
Essar Teleholdings Ltd, which owns a third of unlisted Vodafone Essar, will pledge about 11 percent of its holding to raise the money, the sources said.
Vodafone Essar is majority owned by Britain's Vodafone Plc .
The sources said Essar Teleholdings, which controls the group's telecom holdings, would use the money to invest in group businesses that span telecoms, steel, shipping, oil and construction.
India is the world's fastest-growing mobile market, adding more than 10 million subscribers a month. Vodafone adds more than 2.5 million subscribers a month. ($1 = 48.2 Indian rupees)
(Additional reporting by Devidutta Tripathy in NEW DELHI; Editing by Ranjit Gangadharan)
((anurag.joshi@thomsonreuters.com; Tel: +91-22-6636-9038; Reuters Messaging: anurag.joshi.reuters.com@reuters.net)) For news on debt issues, Reuters 3000 Xtra users can double click on one of the following: Indian bond issuances Asia debt news India Corporate debt pages on Reuters: Spreads over Indian federal bonds Indian secondary corporate bond deals Secondary market Indian CP Prices India Certificates of Deposit page Keywords: ESSAR DEBT/ (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
MUMBAI, June 18 (Reuters) - India's Essar group plans to raise $900 million via a 2-½ year loan, by pledging a part of its stake in the country's third-biggest mobile firm, Vodafone Essar, two sources with direct knowledge of the deal, said.
SBI Capital Markets, a unit of top lender State Bank of India , and Barclays Capital are in the race to arrange the funds and could end up sharing the deal, the banking sources said, declining to be named.
Both the lenders are in discussions with Essar at a rate of below 11 percent, they said, adding the funds could be arranged in the next two weeks.
'We have got a commitment for a majority of the required funds from institutional investors and banks,' said one source, who is directly involved in the deal.
'They are looking at 2-½ year money and we are offering a range of 10.0-10.5 percent,' the second source said.
Essar Teleholdings Ltd, which owns a third of unlisted Vodafone Essar, will pledge about 11 percent of its holding to raise the money, the sources said.
Vodafone Essar is majority owned by Britain's Vodafone Plc .
The sources said Essar Teleholdings, which controls the group's telecom holdings, would use the money to invest in group businesses that span telecoms, steel, shipping, oil and construction.
India is the world's fastest-growing mobile market, adding more than 10 million subscribers a month. Vodafone adds more than 2.5 million subscribers a month. ($1 = 48.2 Indian rupees)
(Additional reporting by Devidutta Tripathy in NEW DELHI; Editing by Ranjit Gangadharan)
((anurag.joshi@thomsonreuters.com; Tel: +91-22-6636-9038; Reuters Messaging: anurag.joshi.reuters.com@reuters.net)) For news on debt issues, Reuters 3000 Xtra users can double click on one of the following: Indian bond issuances Asia debt news India Corporate debt pages on Reuters: Spreads over Indian federal bonds Indian secondary corporate bond deals Secondary market Indian CP Prices India Certificates of Deposit page Keywords: ESSAR DEBT/ (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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