NCLT approves Adani’s 650 crore bid to acquire Dighi Port

March 6, 2020: The bankruptcy tribunal of India, National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved Adani Ports And Special Economic Zone’s (APSEZ) 650-crore bid for the debt-ridden Dighi Port in Maharashtra.

“APSEZ says resolution plan of Dighi Port approved By NCLT” reports Reuters. APSEZ is India’s biggest private port operator led by Gautam Adani while creditors, a consortium of 16 members led by Bank of India claims due worth 3098 crore from the 1,600-acre seaport.

The port is located at a distance of 42 nautical miles (NM) from Mumbai by Sea and 170 km’s south of Mumbai by Road. The North Bank of the port is connected to National Highway 17 via State Highway (SH) 92, and 96 and the South Bank is connected to National Highway 17 via SH 97 and 98. Upgradation of the existing State Highway from 2 lanes to 4 lanes is in progress. The nearest Konkan Railway Rail Head Indapur is 47 km from the Port.

In April 2018, Dighi Port Ltd became the first port in the county to land in NCLT due to bankruptcy proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. In November 2018, four companies including Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) and Adani Ports submitted bids to acquire the port.

In May 2019, NCLT approved JNPT’s bid when withdrawn itself in July 2019 due to suggested modifications from the bankruptcy tribunal. And in September 2019, the committee of creditors of Dighi Port approved the resolution plan of Adani.