New Delhi: In a major move Bharti Airtel founder Sunil Mittal is planning to acquire a 49 percent stake worth around USD 2 billion in the Indian unit of China’s Haier Smart Home Co. Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter. Reports suggest that Haier manufactures home appliances such as refrigerators washing machines TVs air conditioners and other household electronics. Sunil Mittal the owner of Bharti Airtel Limited is reportedly looking to buy this stake in collaboration with private equity firm Warburg Pincus. Sources say the deal could be signed in the coming weeks although some regulatory approvals are still pending. However as deliberations go on there is a chance that Haier may decide not to sell while other buyers could also still emerge the report added. Last month The Economic Times reported that Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is also a key contender for acquiring the stake. Meanwhile global private equity firm TPG Capital and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC also teamed up with Dabur’s Burman family the Goenka family respectively to acquire the stake Moneycontrol reported last month. Reliance also in the race: It is important to note that there are talks going on and Haier may ultimately decide not to sell a stake. Additionally other potential buyers could emerge. Earlier reports suggested that Mukesh Ambanis company Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) was also in the race to acquire a stake in Haier India. In October The Economic Times reported that Haier was considering selling a 25 percent to 49 percent stake in its unit. Sources told Bloomberg News that by November potential investors like Temasek Holdings Pte GIC Pte and Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Company had shown interest. Haier Plans to continue its growth in India Haier reported a 36 per cent growth in revenue at around Rs 8900 crore in 2024. It ranks third in India after LG and Samsung in the household appliance market reported The Economic Times. Moreover the company expects revenue to cross Rs 11500 crore in 2025 NS Satish president of Haier Appliances India told PTI. Haier sells refrigerators air-conditioners washing machines and televisions in India. “And subsequent to that every year we are looking around ₹2000 crore to ₹2500 crore plus. So we have big plans. And we see a big opportunity in India. When you see the economy GDP which is doing very well next is the penetration of the product which is very low when we compare it to our global counterparts” he said.