'Not in a position to comment': Adani Wilmar on report of Adani Group looking to exit JV

Fast-moving consumer goods major Adani Wilmar on Wednesday clarified that it is "not in a position to comment" on a news report that said Adani Group is looking to sell its stake in the FMCG joint venture.

"We would like to clarify that the news item refers to one of the promoter of our Company and not to any actions by the Company. Therefore, the Company is not in a position to comment on the same," the edible oil maker says in a stock exchange filing.

As a policy, the company does not comment on media speculation, it says.

"We would also like to confirm that the Company is not aware of any information which is required to be disclosed under the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 and which has not already been disclosed to the stock exchanges," the filing says.

Adani Enterprises is reportedly looking to sell its entire 43.97% shareholding in the edible oil major, which is expected to be worth about $2.7 billion at the current share price. The move is being seen as part of the ports-to-power conglomerate’s strategy to focus on core projects, which include power generation, ports, and green energy initiatives, as well as to pre-pay debts.

Adani Wilmar is an equal joint venture between Adani Group and Singapore's Wilmar Group. The FMCG firm has 23 plants across 10 states in India. The company sells edible oil, rice, wheat flour, sugar, packaged food and other cooking essentials under the Fortune brand. It made its debut on the stock exchanges in February 2022 after raising ₹3,600 crore through an initial public offering (IPO).

Adani Wilmar last week released its earnings report for the June quarter which showed that the company slipped into losses as profitability was eroded by a fall in edible oil prices. The FMCG company posted a net loss of ₹79 crore in Q1FY24, compared with a net profit of ₹194 crore in the corresponding period last year. The revenue from operations of the country’s largest packaged oil maker dropped 12% to ₹12,928 crore as against ₹14,724 crore in the year-ago period. On the operating front, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) declined sharply by 71% to ₹130 crore, compared to ₹443 crore in the year-ago period. The EBITDA margin stood at 1% versus 3% in the same period last fiscal. During the quarter under review, the revenue from the edible oil segment slipped 14% YoY to ₹9,845 crore, while the food and FMCG business segment recorded revenue growth of 28% YoY to ₹1,097 crore.