Date:23/12/2005 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2005/12/23/stories/2005122301581500.htm

Back Warburg sells balance stake in GACL

Our Bureau

Mumbai , Dec 22

WARBURG Pincus has sold its remaining stake in Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd, its affiliate Elm International selling over 2.18 crore shares in a bulk deal on BSE that fetched it Rs 178 crore. The deal was done at Rs 82 per share, the buyer being Capital International.

This would be in addition to the 7.9 crore shares of GACL that were sold by Elm International and Affinity Investments three days ago for Rs 650 crore through two bulk deals. These deals were also made at Rs 82 a share.

Together, the shares account for over 7.4 per cent stake in GACL.

These investors had bought their shares in 2001 for over Rs 225 a share and would have made profits of nearly three-fold on their investments, according to market watchers. Since then, they said GACL has issued a bonus as well as announced a share split, reducing the face value to Rs 2.

GACL closed the day on BSE at Rs 82.