Reliance Industries (RIL) is likely to take over stressed polyester manufacturer JBF Industries in consortium with CFM Asset Reconstruction Company (ARC), two people aware of the matter told FE.
Bankers had sought takeover bids in July, and the Ahmedabad-based CFM ARC is understood to have put in a `825-crore bid for the company, which owes its lenders Rs 2,116 crore.
The auction was in the form of a Swiss challenge, where banks ask interested bidders to better an existing bid for an asset. The original bidder gets the right of first refusal. In the case of JBF Industries, the RIL-backed bid by CFM ARC is understood to be the only one.
The lead lender to JBF Industries is Bank of Baroda
Emails sent to RIL, CFM ARC and Bank of Baroda remained unanswered till the time of going to press.
According to a bid document, JBF Industries is engaged in the production of products in the polyester value chain, such as PET chips, which are of bottle grade, textile grade and film grade; polyester yarn, such as partially oriented yarn, polyester filament yarn, full drawn yarn and other specialised yarn; and PET films, which are of thin grade, thick grade and metallised grade. The company defaulted on its debt obligations due to its weakened liquidity position, according to a rating report by Care Ratings
In 2020, RIL had acquired a 37.7% stake in textile firm Alok Industries
