Gautam Adanis’ net worth is $88.5 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Gautam Adani, the Indian billionaire who turned a small commodities business into a port, mining and green energy conglomerate, is currently Asia’s richest man.
The 59-year-old tycoon’s net worth hit $88.5 billion on Monday, surpassing fellow countryman Mukesh Ambani’s $87.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. With a personal fortune increasing by nearly $12 billion, Adani is the richest person in the world this year.
The coal magnate – whose controversial mining project in Australia has drawn attention from climate activists including Greta Thunberg – has increasingly looked beyond fossil fuels to expansion . He is moving into renewable energy, airports, data centers and defense contracts – priorities that Prime Minister Narendra Modi also considers vital to nation building and meeting the needs of the world. long-term economic goals of the country.
Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at brokerage HDFC Securities Ltd. based in Mumbai, said: “The Adani Group has spotted and entered all the sectors that are happening at the right time, which has attracted a select group of foreign investors. capital intensive and the company has little difficulty in raising capital for expansion. ”
Several Adani Group listed shares have surged more than 600% in the past two years on bets on his green energy and infrastructure push that will pay off as Modi seeks to revive the economy 2, $9 trillion and hit India’s net zero carbon target by 2070. MSCI Inc.’s decision. Adding more Adani companies to its benchmark India index also means that any fund that tracks the index will have to buy shares.
While 2020 is the year of Ambani – Reliance Industries Ltd. His fortune has generated billions of dollars through a technology pivot that brought Facebook and Google Inc.
Green Commitment
Both Indian billionaires – who have built their empires on fossil fuels or coal – are now promoting green energy projects. Ambani has committed $10 billion over the next three years as part of a larger $76 billion spending plan on renewable energy. Adani has committed to invest a total of $70 billion by 2030 to help make his group the world’s largest producer of renewable energy.
Companies including Total SE and Warburg Pincus LLC invested in Adani’s companies in 2021. The French oil giant agreed in January 2021 to buy 20% of Adani Green Energy Ltd. and a 50% stake in the Indian partner’s solar asset operating portfolio. with a high discount. The deal was valued at just $2.5 billion, compared with Adani Green’s market capitalization of $20 billion at the time.
In March 2021, Warburg said it would invest $110 million in exchange for about half a percent of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd.
As part of its green drive, Adani has revealed plans to increase its renewable energy capacity nearly eightfold by 2025. In May, Adani Green agreed to buy its renewable energy business. locally created by SoftBank Group Corp. enterprise value is 3.5 billion dollars.
Scaling up
In just three years, Adani has gained control of seven airports and nearly a quarter of India’s air traffic. His group now owns the country’s largest airport operator, generator and municipal gas retailer in the non-state sector.
Shares of Adani Green and Adani Total Gas Ltd., a Mumbai-listed joint venture with the French company, have risen more than 1,000% since the start of 2020. Flagship Adani Enterprises Ltd. has increased by more than 730%, Adani Transmission Ltd. more than 500% and Adani Ports is 95% in this period. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex Index is up 40%.
Analysts’ relevance doesn’t stop MSCI from adding some Adani stock to its India gauge. Three of the tycoon’s listed companies were included in May, bringing the group’s total footprint to five. HDFC’s Jasani said the addition has led to more buying compulsion for investors tracking the index.
A college dropout, Adani first tried his luck in Mumbai’s diamond industry in the early 1980s before returning to his home state of Gujarat to help run his plastics business. his son. In 1988, he founded Adani Enterprises.
Demand for ransom
Entrepreneurs are crisis survivors. More than two decades ago, he was kidnapped and held for ransom. In 2008, he was one of the hostages at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai during a terrorist attack that killed at least 166 people.
Adani’s claims of sustainability and green ambitions are criticized by climate campaigners, who point to the group’s Carmichael coal mining project in Australia, which will expand fuel supplies highly polluting fossils. The Adani Group has chosen to use its own money after having difficulty securing outside capital and said in December it was ready to start exporting its first coal from Australia’s mine.
The billionaire has also been attacked by Modi’s political opponents for his proximity to the powerful leader, which some have even called cronyism. Adani has dismissed such criticism as baseless and thrived on his successful strategy of aligning his investments with Modi’s priorities.
Sanjiv Bhasin, director of local brokerage IIFL Securities Ltd., said some of Adani Group’s large businesses such as ports are “almost exclusively”. they took advantage of it,” Bhasin said.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and was automatically generated from the feed provided.)
