The Tamesis
Road sign indicating the direction to New Delhi Airport, one of six airports operated by GMR Airports in India.
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GMR Group-Controlled by billionaires General Manager Rao— has agreed to buy a 7.3% stake in India’s GMR Airports from its French partner Groupe ADP in a deal worth up to €924 million ($1 billion).
According to the agreement, Groupe ADP, the operator of three Paris airports, will first sell a 3.4% stake in GMR Airports to GMR Group for 256 million euros, with the option to sell a further 3.9% stake for approximately 285 million euros. GMR Group will also buy 301 million euros worth of bonds from ADP convertible into GMR Airport shares, Paris-listed ADP said, with the deal expected to be completed in March 2027. statement Published Thursday.
“ADP Group is taking this opportunity to crystallize part of the value of its investment while maintaining significant economic exposure to the future growth potential of this critical asset,” ADP Chairman and CEO Philippe Pascal said in a statement.
Groupe ADP said the share sale valued it at four times its initial investment. Cash generated from the deal will be used to reduce debt in the near term and potentially fund a special dividend as early as this year.
Following the deal, ADP said it will retain its governance rights and continue as a co-sponsor. It does not plan to sell any more shares in GMR Airports. After the transaction is completed, GMR Group’s shareholding in GMR Airport will increase to 43.3%, while ADP’s shareholding will drop to 22.7%.
“ADP Group intends to maintain its investment in the Indian airport industry through its significant financial interest and co-promoter role in GMR Airports,” Pascal said. “We remain fully committed to our international asset value creation strategy, particularly with our Indian partners.”
Groupe ADP acquired a 49% stake in GMR Airports in 2020 for about €1.3 billion, gaining strong governance rights and a foothold in the fast-growing South and Southeast Asian markets. Following the 2024 reorganization to combine GMR Infrastructure and GMR Airports into a single listed entity, ADP split its holdings into equity and preference shares, acquiring 32.3% equity and 45.7% economic interest.
GMR Group was founded by Rao, one of India’s richest tycoons with an estimated net worth of $3.6 billion Forbes‘Real-time data. He is the controlling shareholder of GMR Airports, which operates airports in Hyderabad and Delhi as well as Kualanamu International Airport in Medan, Indonesia. The company helped build Mactan-Cebu International Airport in the Philippines, which was later acquired by Aboitiz InfraCapital. In 2022, Rao divided the non-airport business into GMR Power and Urban Infra.
