Jubilant Bhatia Group promoters Shyam and Hari Bhatia are planning to acquire 40 percent stake in Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages (HCCB). Rs 12,500 crore will be required to complete this deal, for which he is in talks with asset managers, mutual funds and foreign banks.
This news has come to light when Reliance's subsidiary company Campa Cola's brilliant pricing strategy and planning to give higher margins to retailers has created a stir in the Indian drinking market. This has not only increased competition in the market, but has also forced many big companies to change their product pricing policies.
The Economic Times report said that talks are going on with Apollo Global Management, Ares Management, Bain Capital and Kotak Alternate Asset Managers to raise at least one-third of the amount i.e. Rs 4,000-5,000 crore. The conversation is being led by Shamit Bhatia, Non-Executive Director, Jubilant Industries. HCCB is reportedly trying to replicate the asset-light, value-unlocking initiative by PepsiCo. This move is expected to assist in the possible public listing and pricing of HCCB.
Coca-Cola has been exploring the possibility of selling HCCB for months. This news first came in the month of September. Then it was said that American company Coca-Cola wants to unlock the value of its subsidiary Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages (HCCB) in India. At that time, talks were going on with four big business houses of the country, Dabur Group, Jubilant Food Works, Pidilite Industries and Asian Paints. But Dabur and Jubilant have experience of working in the food and beverages industry, so it was believed that these groups could approve this deal. However, no official statement has yet come from these companies regarding this.
