Vedanta acquires debt ridden Athena Chhattisgarh Power for Rs 565 cr

Mining major Vedanta on Thursday said it would acquire debt-ridden Athena Chhattisgarh Power for Rs 564.67 crore in an all-cash transaction. The liquidation process for the company was initiated in March last year.

According to Vedanta, the deal will be completed in the current financial year, fulfilling its power requirement for its aluminium business.

Athena Chattisgarh Power has a 1,200-megawatt coal-based power plant located in Chhattisgarh's Jhanjgir Champa district. The company was admitted under the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process on May 15, 2019. On May 13 last year, a Bench of the NCLT-Hyderabad directed the initiation of the liquidation process of the company.

Lenders to the power plant had kept the reserve price at around Rs 485 crore, it has been learnt. Vedanta had emerged as the highest bidder, beating challengers, such as the Naveen-Jindal-led Jindal Power.

The successful bid is subject to the NCLT's approval. RBSA Advisors was the insolvency professional and transaction advisor to the deal.