Rel Comm in talks with Soros to fund Hutch buy

Reliance Communications is in discussions with American billionaire and financier George Soros to raise funds for the Hutch-Essar acquisition.

The Anil Ambani group company is also expected to place its bid after the Hindu festival of Makar Sankranti that falls on January 14.

"The discussions are in the final stages and we expect to reach a conclusion within the next couple of weeks. RCL would also look at offloading some stake in return for the funding, if it goes through," a source close to the development told Business Standard.

However, the amount RCL is planning to raise was not divulged. "It will depend on the valuation and the funding RCL is able generate, as the company is also in discussions with other PE majors," he said.

Hutchison Telecom International, the largest stakeholder in Hutch-Essar is believed to have valued the GSM operator at over $17-18 billion.

When contacted, a Reliance spokesperson declined to comment on the issue.

The US-based investment guru and philanthropist is the chairman of Soros Fund Management, a private equity fund that manages over $21 billion under various sections. Soros is also planning to set up a new fund for Asia and Anil Ambani is believed to have committed to invest $500 million in it.

Soros was in India in December and is said to have held discussions with top officials of RCL.

RCL is planning to raise money for the acquisition through a mixture of equity and debt. The company is yet to divulge its valuation for Hutch-Essar, with Anil Ambani stating in a recent press conference that RCL "goes by its own standards while valuing a company".

The company had also initiated discussions with the New York-based Warburg Pincus for raising equity for the acquisition. However, this could not be confirmed.

Warburg Pincus had invested $300 million in Bharti Airtel in 1999 and had pumped over $1 billion into various sectors in the country, including hotels and media.

RCL is in discussions with private equity majors such as Texas Pacific group, Carlyle group, Blackstone group, KKR, First Global and Temasek for funds.

The company is expected to put in its bid by mid-January, most likely to be after the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti.

Earlier, Anil Ambani had said in a press conference, "I have lost count of the number of private equity funds that had committed to offer us funds. It's more than 10."