Maytas Infra Ltd will again petition the Company Law Board to allow it to induct the Saudi Binladen Group (SBG) as its strategic partner, according to IL&FS and Maytas' chairman, Ravi Parthasarathy.
IL&FS took over Maytas, promoted by the family of scam-hit Satyam Computer Services' founder, B Ramalinga Raju, following a CLB order last September. It then proposed to induct SBG as its strategic partner, allotting 20 per cent preferential shares in return for a Rs 300 crore capital infusion. It also wanted to induct four people from the group on its board. While the capital infusion happened, the proposal for board induction and formal status as a strategic partner was rejected last month by the CLB.
Speaking after the annual general meeting on Thursday, Parthasarathy said: "There is no dispute. There is no need for adjudication. But it happened. Even the (CLB) order said there is no problem in having a strategic partner. The government has said it will support in all aspects to stabilise the company."
Even as the induction is mired in procedural delays, the Saudi-based construction company had given a commitment to bring orders worth Rs 7,500 crore to Maytas KSA, the joint venture company that Maytas had planned with SBG in Jeddah, he said. Adding that the Rs 300 crore that SBG infused had been a lifeline. SBG has offered to provide about 400 visas to Maytas for logistics support to the joint venture.
Also, Maytas would look to monetise its BOT (build, operate, transfer) projects from next month once the corporate debt restructuring (CDR) is through. These projects, along with a debt of Rs 600 crore, have been transferred to the Maytas Trust, a body formed to repay part of the company's debt. The CDR agreements would be signed this month, he said.
The company had unsustainable debt of Rs 2,000 crore at the time IL&FS stepped in. "We began with a very complex debt restructuring process. Part of the debt would be converted into equity to the banks. After restructuring, the debt would be around Rs 850 crore. The banks have lowered the interest rate to seven per cent for the first year,'' he said.
The company has done a one-time settlement (OTS) of Rs 450 crore with seven out of the nine banks, which had a higher exposure to the company. The OTS would be done for the other two banks shortly. The banks have agreed to a fresh borrowing of Rs 200 crore, to be used for working capital.
Maytas said Rs 392 crore went out of the company to Satyam and an audit trail for Rs 323 crore could be established, and the details had been given to the ministry of corporate affairs. The ministry is in touch with Satyam on this issue. Maytas also denied the claims that it had received money from Satyam, the Raju family or Maytas Properties. "Satyam should reflect the money received from Maytas either as capital, revenue, gift or debt on its books,'' Parthasarathy said.
The company, which would need at least a year more to stabilise its operations, was not in a position to give a prediction for the financial year but expected it to be better than what it was as of March. Parthasarathy said the company in one year had bid for works worth Rs 10,000 crore, including a Rs 1,130-crore project where it emerged as the L1 bidder for a ministry of surface transport project. It also bid for a gas pipeline project with GAIL India.
Though it is not pursuing new projects in the irrigation sector, it would complete the ongoing ones. The irrigation sector alone accounts for Rs 5,000 crore of the order book.
Besides, it has hired another 100 professionals and engineers. It is working to have a diversified construction platform and is seeing an opportunity in West Asia and China. Parthasarathy said they would continue to pursue opportunities in India in roads, marine and power sectors.
The AGM reappointed Parthasarathy as director, Batliboi & Associates as statutory auditors and Vimal Kaushik as managing director of Maytas, apart from increasing the borrowing power of the company.
