Vedanta Resources Successfully Repays Bondholders, Extends Maturity

Anil Agrawal's Vedanta Resources Limited has successfully completed the repayment process for its bondholders. According to the company, it has made an upfront payment of $779 million to bondholders, effectively fulfilling the repayment under the debt restructuring process. Vedanta Resources Limited (VRL) stated in a release that the upfront payment to bondholders was made on Friday. The statement mentioned that VRL completed the repayment process of bondholders on February 7, 2024, as per the consent received at the beginning of the year, extending the maturity period of the $3.2 billion bond successfully until 2029.

Vedanta Resources completed the repayment by making a cash upfront payment of $779 million to bondholders for redeeming a portion of the bonds and extending their maturity period. The company also paid a consent fee of $68 million to bondholders who had agreed to the restructuring, as previously disclosed.

In January, Vedanta secured consent from bondholders for the restructuring of four series of bonds to reduce the burden of its heavy debt. Each of these series includes two bonds of $1 billion each, with the majority maturing in 2024. Additionally, a $1.2 billion bond was included in 2025, and a $600 million bond was included in 2026.

In December, Vedanta had obtained a $1.25 billion loan from private creditors to refinance/repay a portion of the $3.2 billion debt maturing in 2024 and 2025. Vedanta Group had announced a significant deleveraging and restructuring plan in September of the previous year.

The statement further emphasized that with this step, Vedanta Group will be reorganized across 17 major businesses. It stated, "Each business has world-class leadership, employs the latest cutting-edge technology, and is positioned as an import substitution and domestic demand fulfiller. They provide an equal and diverse opportunity for institutional and retail investors."

Vedanta possesses a unique portfolio of assets between Indian and global companies in the metal and mining sector. It includes metals such as zinc, silver, lead, aluminum, chromium, copper, nickel, iron ore, and steel, along with minerals. The portfolio extends to power, encompassing coal and renewable energy, and now includes semiconductor manufacturing for display glass.