Mumbai, India :Swan Energy Limited (SEL), a significant global conglomerate involved in Real Estate, Textiles, Oil & Gas, Defence, Commercial Shipbuilding and Ship Repairs, and Heavy Fabrication, has disclosed that its subsidiary, Swan LNG Private Limited (SLPL), has fully repaid a loan totaling approximately Rs. 2206 crore, including interest, to a consortium of banks.
SLPL’s prepayment will result in savings of about Rs. 250 crore in interest payments, strengthening Swan group’s financial position and potentially prompting an upgrade and re-rating. Following the prepayment, SEL’s debt has decreased to Rs. 1675 crore. The group’s external debt, which stood at approximately Rs. 4128 crore in September 2023, declined to around Rs. 3817 crore by December 2023. SEL extended a loan of Rs. 2210 crore to facilitate the prepayment.
Recently, SEL raised Rs. 3,000 crore through a Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP), attracting significant interest from various qualified institutional investors, including Quant Mutual Fund, SBI Life, LIC, LIC Mutual Fund, Tata Mutual Fund, Infini Mutual Funds, SBI General Insurance, BNP Paribas Mutual Fund, Nomura, Diamond Asia, Bank of India Mutual Fund, ITI Mutual Fund, Goldman Sachs, Future Generali, Anand Rathi, as well as other domestic and foreign institutions and family offices.
The funds from the QIP will be strategically utilized for the modernization of the recently acquired Reliance Naval and Engineering Ltd (RNEL) shipyard at Pipavav. Additionally, a portion of the funds will go towards project expansion and debt reduction.
SEL aims to become a prominent private player in the manufacturing of defence, commercial, and oil and gas vessels, as well as a significant player in ship repairing, with aspirations to establish a hub for global manufacturing in the Asia Pacific region. The group is actively enhancing its shipyard restoration efforts, focusing on activities such as dredging, reinstatement of licenses and certifications, implementation of industry-standard safety measures, and upgrading basic utilities, with plans to commence commercial operations by June 2024.