Vedanta Resources Eyes US Relisting, Plans $100 Bn India Investment

Vedanta Resources chairman Anil Agarwal is planning to relist the company, possibly in the US, as part of a broader plan to invest $100 billion in India's metals and minerals sector over the coming years. Vedanta Resources, the London-listed parent firm, was delisted from the London Stock Exchange in 2018.

"I have a vision to get about $100 billion into India," Agarwal said in an interview with the Economic Times. He added that the group's growth so far has been driven by its London listing, and that the US is now an option for raising funds through a fresh listing.

Vedanta Resources first listed on the LSE in 2003 to gain access to global equity and debt markets and to build its international profile, according to reports. It was the first Indian company to secure a premium LSE listing.

The company delisted from the LSE in October 2018, when parent firm Volcan Investments took it private. At the time, Volcan said the LSE listing was no longer needed because Indian markets had matured, and that going private would simplify the group's structure.

However, the delisting came weeks after 13 protesters were killed in police firing at the company's copper smelter in Tamil Nadu in September 2018, an incident that triggered political opposition to the company in the UK.

Demerger Creates Five Listed Entities

The development comes after India-listed Vedanta Ltd completed its demerger into five separate listed companies. Four newly demerged entities made their stock market debut on Monday, June 15.

Vedanta Aluminium Metal emerged as the top performer, listing at ₹522 per share, well above market estimates of ₹420-450. Vedanta Oil & Gas debuted at ₹38 on the NSE, while Vedanta Power and Vedanta Iron & Steel listed at ₹41.8 and ₹20, respectively. Shares of Vedanta Ltd, the residual entity, traded at ₹311.2, up 1.6%.

Based on these debut prices and Vedanta's existing market value, the combined implied value of the five entities works out to about ₹933 per original Vedanta share, as per reports. This is around 20.6% higher than the pre-demerger closing price of ₹773.6 on April 29.

On India's policy environment, Agarwal said the government's aatmanirbhar (self-reliance) push has helped remove obstacles for businesses but more can be done. "The government really wants us to be self-sufficient," he said, as quoted by ET.

He suggested India adopt a self-certification system similar to Canada, Australia and the US, paired with strict penalties for non-compliance. According to Agarwal, this approach would lead to faster execution of projects.