Vedanta Ltd in talks with US-based Farallon to raise $1 billion: Report – ET EnergyWorld

Vedanta Ltd., billionaire Anil Agarwal’s Indian commodities major, is in talks with US-based Farallon Capital Management to raise at least $1 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.

The structure of the fund-raising hasn’t been finalized, and discussions are ongoing, said the people who declined to be identified as the talks are private. The proposal, if it comes to fruition, will lessen the need to raise money through a syndicated loan, one of the people said.

Agarwal has been relying on dividends from the Mumbai-listed company to repay debts at his London vehicle, which has faced mounting investor concerns over its cash flows as interest rates soared. Other plans to raise money had met with challenges.

Vedanta didn’t respond to an email and phone calls seeking comments. An email to Farallon Capital was unanswered.

The company had also been in talks with at least three banks including Barclays Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Standard Chartered Plc for a syndicated dollar-denominated loan. Last month, it announced plans to hand out a fifth dividend for the financial year ending March.