India’s sovereign wealth fund National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) announced that it has invested $300 million or Rs 2,2,50 crore for a 22.5% stake in Hindustan Ports Private Limited (HPPL), the wholly owned subsidiary of DP World.
The investment marks the single largest transaction by NIIF’s master fund and takes the vehicle’s total investment in DP World’s India arms to $500 million, per a joint announcement by the companies.
HPPL operates five container terminals managing more than 5 million TEU or standard 20-ft container unit capacity, representing a national market share of over 20%. The company’s two terminals are located in Mumbai, and one each in Mundra, Chennai and Cochin.
This investment from NIIF Master Fund extends the existing DP World and NIIF partnership, formed through the creation of Hindustan Infralog Private Limited (HIPL) in 2018, the statement added.
Since its inception, HIPL has made substantial investments in rail logistics, multi-modal logistics parks, container freight stations, economic zones, cold chain infrastructure and contract logistics to create a market leading integrated logistics platform.
The primary capital raised through this transaction will aid in new infrastructure development, drive supply chain efficiencies and support future growth initiatives of HPPL, the statement said. The investment in this combined entity will improve cargo connectivity which will deliver cost efficiencies, it added.
“Since the beginning of this partnership with NIIF, we have made significant progress in building an inland logistics infrastructure network of great scale that complements our container ports platform. Notably, the opportunity landscape in India remains significant and this transaction will allow us to accelerate investment across ports and logistics to drive returns for our respective stakeholders,” said Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World.
The transaction is subject to customary completion conditions and is expected to close by Q1 CY2023.