NEW DELHI: Unitech Corporate Parks (UCP), a Unitech group firm listed in London, plans to sell its IT special economic zone (SEZ) in Gurgaon comprising around 3.5 million sq ft of office space for about Rs 2,800 crore.
UCP — listed on the London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM) and formed to invest in commercial real estate in India — has 60% stake in the Gurgaon SEZ. Unitech has the remaining stake in the SEZ.
According to sources, UCP is looking to sell the Gurgaon
SEZ and has given the mandate to property consultant Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) India to find out potential buyers. JLL India has started the process to sell this asset by initiating informal discussions with probable buyers, sources said, adding that formal bids could be called by the end of this month. The valuation of the deal is expected to be around Rs 2,800 crore, sources said.
A Unitech spokesperson declined to comment. Unitech is expected to garner Rs 1,100-1 ,200 crore from the deal, which will be used to retire debt and fund construction of projects, sources said. They added the SEZ is expected to be completed by the year-end and 75% of the area has already been leased.
UCP raised about 360 million pounds by issuing and placing its ordinary shares on the AIM of the London Stock Exchange in December, 2006. It had invested in six commercial projects in India in partnership with Unitech, of which five are in the National Capital Region and one in Kolkata. UCP has 60% stake in these properties, while Unitech has 40%. That apart, Unitech holds 12-13 % stake in UCP.
"The board is working actively on all future options for the company and ways to monetize the assets as they progress ," UCP had said in its half yearly report in December, 2012. "We continue to believe that the maximum value for shareholders will be achieved by creating investments which are substantially physically complete and well let, and so our strategy continues to be to progress the projects as quickly as tenant demand permits," it had said.
Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com