Adani Ports buys Ocean Sparkle for Rs 1700 cr through Adani Harbour Svces

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) through its subsidiary, Adani Harbour Services is acquiring 100 per cent stake in Ocean Sparkle (OSL), a leading third-party marine services provider, at an enterprise valuation of Rs 1700 crore

Ocean Sparkle is a leading player in towage, pilotage, and dredging with an asset base of 94 own vessels and 13 third-party-owned vessels. The company has Rs 300 crore of free cash and was established by a group of marine technocrats with P Jairaj Kumar as the chairman and MD, in 1995. Kumar will continue as the chairman of the OSL board.

“Given the synergies of OSL and Adani Harbour Services, the consolidated business is likely to double in five years with improved margins, thereby creating significant value for APSEZ’s shareholders,” said Karan Adani, CEO and Whole-time Director, APSEZ.

“This acquisition not only provides APSEZ a significant share of India’s marine services market but also provides us a platform for building presence in other countries, thereby facilitating APSEZ’s journey towards becoming the largest port operator globally by 2030 and largest integrated transport utility in India,” he said.

OSL has long-standing relationships with its existing clients, with contracts ranging from 5 to 20 years (average length of contracts is 7 years).

Further, the contracts are on a take or pay basis, thereby providing robustness to OSL’s business model. The company has a presence at all the major ports, 15 minor ports and all the three LNG terminals in India.