A consortium led by private equity fund Blackstone, along with the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and GIC of Singapore, submitted a non-binding bid last week to acquire a controlling stake in Haldiram Snacks Food, The Economic Times reported.
Haldiram Snacks Food, which is the combined packaged snack and food business of the Delhi and Nagpur factions of the Agarwal family, is India’s largest snack and convenience foods company.
Blackstone and its partners are keen to buy 74-76% of the company, valuing the business at $8-8.5 billion, the report said, adding that if the deal goes through, it will be the largest private equity buyout in India so far.
Any transaction is conditional upon the successful merger that’s still under way between the Nagpur and Delhi factions as part of a plan approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). It is expected to be completed in the next three to four months, the report said.
The Competition Commission of India had approved the merger last April. Blackstone has also sounded out its Canadian and other Asian LPs; they may also participate if the deal talks progress or the total cheque size goes up, the report said.
The third faction of the Haldiram empire, based in the east, is not involved in the merger process.