Patanjali sweetens bid for Ruchi Soya; revised offer around 30% higher than Adani group

New Delhi: Patanjali Ayurveda has raised its bid to acquire Ruchi Soya and had made the revised offer to the Committee of Creditors (CoC) for the debt-ridden company, sources said. The latest bid is around 30 percent higher than that of the Adani group, which is also in the race to acquire the company with its offer of around Rs 3,300 crore, sources said.

The new offer was made after the representatives of Baba Ramdev-led Patanjali group met the CoC of Ruchi Soya, said a source, adding that they had asked the group to sweeten the offer.

Patanjali has also assured the lenders that it would invest extra capital required to revive the company. Haridwar-based Patanjali group had emerged as the front runner with a bid of over Rs 4,000 crore to acquire Ruchi Soya. The CoC of the company is meeting today and may finalise the bids. When contacted, Patanjali spokesperson S K Tijarawala said: “Tomorrow [Monday] CoC is meeting and we are waiting for the outcome.” [caption id=“attachment_4446443” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Patanjali. Representational image. Reuters[/caption] Patanjali and Adani apart, Wilmar, Emami Agrotech and Godrej Agrovet have also put in bids to acquire Ruchi Soya. Patanjali Ayurveda already has a tie-up with the Indore-based Ruchi Soya for edible oil refining and packaging. Ruchi Soya, facing insolvency proceedings, has a total debt of about Rs 12,000 crore. The company has many manufacturing plants and its leading brands include Nutrela, Mahakosh, Sunrich, Ruchi Star and Ruchi Gold. Earlier, Patanjali spokesperson had said that the company has bid for Ruchi Soya as it aims to be a major player in the edible oil segment, particularly soybean oil. It also wants to work for farmers benefit. In December 2017, Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd entered into the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) and Shailendra Ajmera was appointed to act as interim resolution Professional (IRP). The appointment was made by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on the application of the creditors Standard Chartered Bank and DBS Bank Ltd, under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). Adani Wilmar sells edible oils under Fortune brand. Emami Agrotech is the edible oil and bio-diesel arm of Emami Group of Companies, the Rs 100 billion, business conglomerate based in Kolkata. It has diverse business interests in segments such as production and distribution of edible oil, specialty fats and bio-diesel. Godrej Agrovet, part of Godrej group, is into animal feed, crop protection, oil palm, dairy, poultry and processed foods.