Hyderabad: The Telangana government on Wednesday formally acquired Hyderabad Metro Rail Phase I from Larsen & Toubro Limited for Rs 1,461 crore.
The state government signed a share purchase agreement with Larsen & Toubro Limited and L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited (LTMRHL) for the acquisition of 100 per cent equity shares of LTMRHL at an equity value of Rs 1,461.47 crore.
The state government had last year decided to take over Hyderabad Metro Rail Phase I through the Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL).
The agreement was signed in the presence of the Chief Secretary and HMRL Chairman, K. Ramakrishna Rao, Special Chief Secretary, Municipal Affairs and Urban Development, Jayesh Ranjan, HMRL Managing Director, Sarfaraz Ahmad, and senior management of L&T and LTMRHL.
The share purchase agreement was signed by Ahmad on behalf of the HMRL, D.K. Sen on behalf of the L&T Ltd, and KVB Reddy on behalf of the LTMRHL.
According to a statement by the HMRL, the debt of LTMRHL, amounting to Rs 13,538.53 crore, as on April 30, which was guaranteed by L&T, shall now be refinanced with a guarantee issued by the Telangana government.
The transaction advisor is IDBI Capital, and the legal advisory services were provided by Saraf & Partners.
In this context, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Chairman and Managing Director, S.N. Subrahmanyan, called upon Chief Minister Revanth Reddy earlier in the day.
L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited has been operating Hyderabad Metro Rail Phase I, spanning three corridors with a total network length of 69 km, since November 2017.
The system currently serves an average daily ridership of approximately 4.5 lakh passengers and has logged in about 86 crore passenger trips since its inception.
The acquisition of Hyderabad Metro Rail Phase I will enable closer strategic alignment between the existing Phase I and the proposed Phase II network, fostering seamless integration in planning, execution, and service delivery. This unified approach is expected to strengthen and support the creation of a more cohesive, reliable, and commuter-friendly metro network for Hyderabad, a statement said.
(IANS)
