India Cements sale to UltraTech: What owner N Srinivasan told employees
"There will be space for everybody, and good workers will be rewarded; there is no need...for anyone working for India Cements to feel threatened or insecure about the future," he said
India Cements Vice Chairman and Managing Director N Srinivasan. File photo: India Cements website
India Cements Vice Chairman and Managing Director N Srinivasan has asked the employees not to feel “threatened and insecure” following the announcement of UltraTech Cement acquiring 32.72 per cent stake in the company.
Aditya Birla Group flagship company UltraTech Cement will acquire a 32.72 per cent stake in India Cements from promoters and their associates in a Rs 3,954 deal.
Besides, Ultratech has also announced a Rs 3,142.35 crore open offer to acquire another 26 per cent share of India Cements Ltd (ICL) from its shareholders.
The board of the Aditya Birla firm approved the acquisition of 32.72 per cent stake from promoters and their associates at Rs 390 per share, according to a regulatory filing from UltraTech on Sunday (July 28).
It has entered into share purchase agreements for a 28.42 per cent stake from promoters – Srinivasan, Chitra Srinivasan, Rupa Gurunath and S K Asokh Baalaje and a 4.30 per cent share from Sri Saradha Logistics.
After the completion of the Rs 3,954 crore deal, UltraTech’s stake in India Cements Ltd (ICL) will increase to over 55 per cent.
Addressing India Cements employees, Srinivasan said they had to sell their stake due to reduce costs, according to a report in Moneycontrol.
“We had taken all steps to reduce our cost and we were also relying on an investor to purchase a significant amount of land we own, which would have alleviated many problems. But that did not happen, and therefore, we reverted to the solution we had considered earlier, which is selling the company,” he told the employees.
He added, “The change from India Cements to UltraTech does not mean a change in your career, because I have been personally assured they (Aditya Birla group) are going to follow the same policies that we have implemented so far. There will be space for everybody, and good workers will be rewarded. There is no need, in my assessment, for anyone working for India Cements to feel threatened or insecure about the future. The future is good. So, remove any doubts from your mind.”
India Cements was founded in Tamil Nadu in 1946 by S N N Sankaralinga Iyer and T S Narayanaswami.
(With agency inputs)