ADANIENSOL

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own. Refiles to fix extra spacing in fifth paragraph.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, Sept 19 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Gautam Adani is catching a moment of relief. India's securities regulator cleared the tycoon and units of his $152 billion infrastructure conglomerate of stock manipulation charges raised by a short seller in 2023. However, its fortunes won't improve much so long as U.S. charges hang over the group.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India on Thursday said the transactions involving Adani Enterprises ADEL.NS, Adani Ports APSE.NS and Adani Power ADAN.NS between 2018 and 2023 flagged by Nathan Anderson's now-disbanded firm Hindenburg Research did not violate the rules at the time on related party transactions.

The order closes the loop on a more than two-year-old saga marked by a $150 billion reduction in Adani group companies' market value and muddled by allegations of conflict of interest against former SEBI Chair Madhabi Puri Buch, who left her role in February.

The clean bill of health from the watchdog now led by Tuhin Kanta Pandey hardly changes the group's local standing. Indian mutual funds managing some $850 billion in assets were wary of what they see as the group's opacity and its rapid growth before Hindenburg struck, and remain so: Adani Enterprises stock is about 30% lower than at the start of 2023.

A more potent overhang is the U.S. Justice Department's indictment of the tycoon in a $265 million Indian bribery scheme. The Adani group denies any wrongdoing but the charges have complicated the conglomerate's fundraising prospects. Though BlackRock BLK.N subscribed to bonds an Adani unit issued in April to finance an acquisition, that borrowing came at an increased cost than its past deals.

Non-U.S. banks including Barclays BARC.L and DBS DBSM.SI lent $250 million to Adani's airport and ports units last month, Bloomberg reported citing unnamed people familiar with the transactions. But the U.S. issue stalled Adani's efforts to cut its dependence on Indian banks, which hold 47% of its 2.9 trillion rupees ($32.8 billion) debt. The group has returned to equity markets but only for carefully controlled issuances to institutional investors, not the public.

If anything, its stateside problems are widening. A subsidiary of Adani Enterprises has been named among 43 Indian exporters in a U.S. complaint over dumping of solar exports, a person familiar with the situation told Reuters Breakingviews. Similar investigations into Southeast Asian companies have attracted prohibitively high tariffs.

The resumption of trade talks this week between India and the U.S. may smooth the path for Adani to eventually draw a line under the Justice Department's probe, perhaps through a settlement. Until then, its other victories are superficial.

Follow Shritama Bose on LinkedIn and X.

CONTEXT NEWS

The Securities and Exchange Board of India on September 18 dismissed allegations of stock manipulation against billionaire Gautam Adani and his group of companies made by U.S. short-seller Hindenburg Research.

The capital markets regulator began investigating the group's flagship Adani Enterprises and its ports and energy units in 2023 after Hindenburg accused them of using tax havens and failing to disclose transactions between related parties. SEBI officials said in the order that the transactions under review, which were carried out between 2018 and 2023, did not qualify as related party transactions under the rules at the time.

(Editing by Una Galani; Production by Aditya Srivastav)

((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on BOSE/[email protected]))

Sept 2 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• INCORPORATES ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS STEP-FOURTEEN

Source text: ID:nBSE7fldvh

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

Aug 27 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• INCORPORATES ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS STEP-FIFTEEN

Source text: ID:nBSE4LW327

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

Aug 5 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS LTD - INCORPORATES ADANI ELECTRICITY VASAI-VIRAR LIMITED

Source text: ID:nNSEvN6mS

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

Aug 4 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• INCORPORATES THREE WHOLLY OWNED SUBSIDIARIES

Source text: ID:nNSE81JfZX

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

July 28 (Reuters) - Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd DIAC.NS:

• DIAMOND POWER INFRASTRUCTURE LTD - RECEIVES 13.49 BILLION RUPEES ORDER FROM ADANI ENERGY

• DIAMOND POWER INFRASTRUCTURE LTD - RECEIVES 13.49 BILLION RUPEES ORDER FROM ADANI ENERGY

Source text: ID:nBSE7JHgl5

Further company coverage: DIAC.NS

(([email protected];;))

July 24 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS LTD - Q1 CAPEX AT 22.24 BILLION RUPEES

• ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS - ANTICIPATE SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN CAPEX ROLL-OUT, NEW BID ACTIVITY FROM Q2

Source text: ID:nBSEb0C6wW

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];))

May 28 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS LTD - TO CONSIDER FUNDRAISING PROPOSAL ON MAY 31

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];))

Changes media packaging code, recasts first paragraph, adds investment targets for Reliance Industries in paragraphs 4-5

May 23 (Reuters) - Indian conglomerates led by billionaires Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani said in separate statements on Friday that they will invest more money to develop their projects in the country's northeast region.

The Adani Group will invest 500 billion rupees ($5.84 billion) over the next decade to develop infrastructure, including roads and highways, as well as green energy projects such as hydro and pumped storage, chairman Gautam Adani said at an industry event in New Delhi.

Earlier this year, he announced his ports-to-power conglomerate will invest 500 billion rupees in the northeastern state of Assam to expand airports, roads and gas distribution.

Reliance Industries, which has invested 300 billion rupees in the region so far, is aiming to increase it to as much as 750 billion rupees in the next five years, chairman Mukesh Ambani said at the same event.

The oil-to-retail group will set up 350 biogas plants in the region and will build factories to produce fast-moving consumer goods, he added.

($1 = 85.6880 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

(([email protected]; X: @MukherjeeHritam;))

May 6 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• Q4 CONSOL NET PROFIT 6.47 BILLION RUPEES

• Q4 CONSOL TOTAL INCOME 65.96 BILLION RUPEES

Source text: ID:nnAZN3SOFU2

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

By Jayshree P Upadhyay

MUMBAI, April 30 (Reuters) - India's markets regulator has kept in abeyance pleas by the Adani group and its offshore investors to settle a raft of regulatory charges until internal processes are reviewed, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), where a new chief took charge in March, is reviewing rules of settlement pleas, the regulator said last month. A lack of uniformity in the settlement process and unclear rules on the nature of penalties imposed has prompted the review, the first source said.

The review could take three months after which the Adani pleas will be taken up under new processes, said the second source, with direct knowledge of the matter.

Under SEBI's settlement process, investors and market participants pay a monetary fine or agree to regulatory directions without admission or denial of guilt.

The sources declined to be identified as the status of investigations and pleas are private.

SEBI and the Adani group did not respond to e-mails seeking comment.

SEBI began investigating the Adani group in 2023 after US-based shortseller Hindenburg alleged improper use of tax havens and stock manipulation by the group, setting off a $150 billion sell-off despite the conglomerate's denials of wrongdoing. The shares have since recovered.

Gautam Adani and top executives of Adani Green are also facing indictment by the U.S. authorities alleging that they paid bribes to secure Indian power supply contracts and misled U.S. investors during fund raises. On Monday the company informed stock exchanges in India that an independent review of the indictment did not find any non-compliance of law by Adani group officials.

In India, SEBI was investigating 24 charges against group companies and its offshore investors, it said in a filing to the Supreme Court in 2023.

Thirty Adani group entities have applied to settle some of these regulatory charges, said the second source.

The Adani pleas are among over three hundred pending applications for settlement but are the most prominent being reviewed, the source added.

SEBI has charged Adani Enterprises ADEL.NS , Adani PortsAPSE.NS , Adani Energy ADAI.NS and Adani Power ADAN.NS of wrongfully categorising certain shareholders as public, according to financial statements filed by these four companies.

Twenty-six other Adani group and related entities have been charged with categorizing shareholdings by three Mauritius based offshore funds as public shareholdings when these funds were linked to Vinod Adani, brother of Adani group Chairman Gautam Adani, the source said.

Under Indian law, at least one-fourth of a listed company's shares should be held by public shareholders.

These Adani entities had sought to pay a monetary fine for settling the market infraction, without proposing to recategorise the shareholding, the second source said.

“For the settlement to proceed, Adani group companies will have to re-categorise the shares held by these funds as non-public shareholding,” said the other source.

Separately a dozen offshore funds invested in Adani group companies were charged with violation of disclosure rules and in breach of regulatory prescribed investment limits, Reuters had reported last year.

(Reporting by Jayshree P. Upadhyay; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

(([email protected]; +91-9833024892;))

Updates March 21 story with statement from India commerce ministry

By Sarita Chaganti Singh, Shivangi Acharya

NEW DELHI, March 24 (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has decided to let lapse a $23 billion program to incentivize domestic manufacturing, just four years after it launched the effort to woo firms away from China, according to four government officials.

The scheme will not be expanded beyond the 14 pilot sectors and production deadlines will not be extended despite requests from some participating firms, two of the officials said.

Some 750 companies, including Apple supplier Foxconn and Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries, signed up to the Production-Linked Initiative scheme, public records show.

Firms were promised cash payouts if they met individual production targets and deadlines. The hope was to raise the share of manufacturing in the economy to 25% by 2025.

Instead, many firms that participated in the program failed to kickstart production, while others that met manufacturing targets found India slow to pay out subsidies, according to government documents and correspondence seen by Reuters.

As of October 2024, participating firms had produced $151.93 billion worth of goods under the program, or 37% of the target that Delhi had set, according to an undated analysis of the program compiled by the commerce ministry. India had issued just $1.73 billion in incentives - or under 8% of the allocated funds, the document said.

News of the government's decision to not extend the plan and specifics about the lag in payouts are being reported by Reuters for the first time.

Modi's office and the commerce ministry, which oversees the program, did not respond to requests for comment. Since the plan's introduction, manufacturing's share of the economy has decreased from 15.4% to 14.3%.

In a separate statement on Saturday, the commerce ministry said participating firms had produced $163 billion worth of goods as of November 2024. The ministry did not say if the program would be allowed to expire but said PLIs have "incentivized domestic manufacturing, leading to increased production, job creation, and a boost in exports."

Foxconn, which now employs thousands of contract workers in India, and Reliance didn't return requests for comment.

Two of the government officials told Reuters the end of the program did not mean Delhi had abandoned its manufacturing ambitions and that alternatives were being planned.

The government last year defended the program's impact, particularly in pharmaceuticals and mobile-phone manufacturing, which have seen explosive growth. Some 94% of the nearly $620 million in incentives disbursed between April and October 2024 were directed to those two sectors.

In some instances, some food-sector companies that applied for subsidies weren't issued them due to factors such as "non compliance of investment thresholds" and companies "not achieving stipulated minimum growth," according to the analysis. The document did not provide specifics, though it found production in the sector had exceeded targets. Reuters could not determine which companies the analysis referred to.

But Delhi had previously acknowledged problems and agreed to extend some deadlines and increase payment frequency after complaints from PLI participants. One of the Indian officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential matters, said that excessive red tape and bureaucratic caution continued to stymie the scheme's effectiveness.

As an alternative, India is considering supporting certain sectors by partially reimbursing investments made to set up plants, which would allow firms to recover costs faster than having to wait for production and sale, another official said.

Trade expert Biswajit Dhar at the Delhi-based Council for Social Development think-tank, who has said Modi's government needs to do more to attract foreign investment, said the country might have missed its moment.

The incentives program was "possibly the last chance we had to revive our manufacturing sector," he said. "If this kind of mega-scheme fails, do you have any expectation that anything is going to succeed?"

The stalling of manufacturing comes as India tries to circumvent the trade war unleashed by U.S. President Donald Trump, who has criticised Delhi's protectionist policies.

Trump's threat of reciprocal tariffs on countries like India that have a trade surplus with the U.S. means the export sector is increasingly challenged, said Dhar. "There was some amount of tariff protection ... and all that is going to be slashed."

HITS AND MISSES

The program was introduced at an opportune time for India: China, which for decades had been the world's factory floor, was struggling to maintain production amid Beijing's zero-COVID policy.

The U.S. was also seeking to reduce its economic reliance on an increasingly assertive Beijing, prompting many multinationals to pursue a "China plus one" policy of diversifying production lines.

With its large youthful population, lower costs and a government regarded as relatively friendly to the West, India seemed set to benefit.

India has become a global leader in pharmaceutical and mobile-phone production in recent years.

The country produced $49 billion worth of mobiles in the 2023-24 fiscal year, up 63% from 2020-21, government data show. Industry leaders like Apple now manufacture their newest and most sophisticated cellphones in India, after having started with low-cost models.

Similarly, pharmaceutical exports nearly doubled to $27.85 billion in 2023-24 from a decade ago.

But the success was not repeated in the other sectors, which include steel, textiles and solar panel manufacturing. India faces fierce competition from cheaper rivals like China in many of those fields.

In the solar industry, for instance, eight of the 12 companies that signed up to PLI are unlikely to meet their targets, according to a December 2024 analysis of the sector prepared by the renewable energy ministry and seen by Reuters. The eight firms included units of Reliance, Adani Group and the Indian conglomerate JSW.

The analysis found that the Reliance entity would only meet 50% of the production target it had been set for the end of the 2027 fiscal year, when the solar PLI scheme will expire. It also said that the Adani business had not ordered equipment it needed to manufacture the solar panels and that JSW had not "done anything yet."

JSW declined to comment, while Adani did not respond to questions.

The commerce ministry said in a January letter to the renewables ministry seen by Reuters that it would not agree to its counterpart's request to extend the scheme beyond 2027 as doing so "will result in unfair benefit for non-performers."

The renewables ministry said in response to Reuters' questions that it was committed to "fairness and accountability," as well as "ensuring that only those who meet their targets are rewarded."

In the steel sector, investment and production also lag targets. Fourteen of the 58 projects approved for PLIs have been withdrawn or removed due to lack of progress, according to the undated program-wide analysis.

($1 = 86.4425 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Shivangi Acharya and Sarita Chaganti Singh; Editing by Aftab Ahmed and Katerina Ang)

(([email protected];))

Repeats with added coding; no changes to story text

NEW DELHI, March 22 (Reuters) - India's key manufacturing scheme received investments of nearly $19 billion as of November last year, the trade ministry said on Saturday, a day after Reuters reported New Delhi will let the $23-billion incentive program lapse amid disappointing results.

The incentive scheme will not be expanded beyond 14 pilot sectors and production deadlines will not be extended despite requests from some participating firms, Reuters has reported.

The trade ministry, in a statement, said private firms had produced goods worth nearly $163 billion under the scheme, 90% of the target until fiscal year 2024/25, and the government had in turn paid out less than $1.7 billion in incentives.

The payouts make for 8% of the scheme's intended subsidies, Reuters had reported.

Projects are implemented over two to three years and claims are usually made after the first year of production, as per the statement. "Hence, most of the projects are at implementation stage and will be filing incentive claims in due course."

The trade ministry's statement did not mention the Reuters report.

($1 = 85.9900 Indian rupees)

(Editing by Mark Heinrich)

(([email protected];))

March 21 (Reuters) - India's Adani Energy Solutions ADAI.NS, the power transmission arm of billionaire Gautam Adani's Adani Group, has won a 28 billion rupee ($325 million) project in the western state of Gujarat, it said on Friday.

The project will create a power transmission system for a green hydrogen/ammonia manufacturing unit in Mundra, Gujarat and will be completed in three years, the company said in an exchange filing.

The company's total orderbook stands at 575.61 billion rupees, it said.

India is aiming to produce 5 million tonnes per annum of green hydrogen by 2030 and will need 125 gigawatts of renewable energy for that.

The government is targeting at least 500 GW of non-fossil power capacity by 2030, up from 165 GW currently.

However, a lack of power transmission infrastructure is leading to delays in setting up renewable energy projects and cancellation of projects.

($1 = 86.1500 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)

(([email protected]; (+91 9945291420); Reuters Messaging: [email protected]))

By Sarita Chaganti Singh and Arpan Chaturvedi

NEW DELHI, March 13 (Reuters) - The Indian government has asked a local court to deliver a summons issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to billionaire Gautam Adani over alleged securities fraud and a $265 million bribery scheme, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

The summons, which was issued under Hague Service Convention that does not allow the serving of legal documents directly to defendants in India, would require Adani or his legal counsel to appear in the case in the United States, Indian lawyers said.

Adani Group has denied the allegations, describing them as "baseless" and vowing to seek "all possible legal recourse".

India's federal ministry of law has asked a district court in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Adani's home state, to deliver the summons to him, the letter dated February 25 shows.

"The summons seems to be for appearance in a court in New York. If service is effected through the Indian court, the respondents will have to appear," said Arshdeep Khurana, a criminal lawyer in India.

Adani and India's law ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The summons does not imply an extradition risk for the businessman, who oversees a sprawling conglomerate spanning airport construction to media, another lawyer said.

"Extradition proceedings only come in to the picture if the U.S. court issues warrants of arrest," said Malak Bhatt, founding partner at NM Law Chambers.

Reuters reported on February 18 that the SEC was making efforts to serve its complaint on Gautam Adani and his nephew, Sagar Adani, and was seeking help from India to do so.

Reuters could not determine if the summons against Adani's nephew has also been processed.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month said he did not discuss the Adani case with U.S. President Donald Trump during his visit to Washington.

(Reporting by Sarita Chaganti Singh and Arpan Chaturvedi; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)

(([email protected];))

March 10 (Reuters) - Fitch Ratings has assigned a negative outlook to Indian energy infrastructure company Adani Energy Solutions Limited ADAI.NS, citing concerns over corporate governance and potential risks from ongoing U.S. investigations.

The action comes months after U.S. authorities accused billionaire Gautam Adani and top Adani Group executives of paying $265 million in bribes for Indian power contracts and misleading U.S. investors during fundraising, charges the group has called "baseless".

Adverse findings from the U.S. investigations could weaken governance standards and trigger a downgrade of the company's rating in the near to medium term, Fitch said on Sunday.

It could cut the rating if the investigations lead to regulatory penalties, restrictions, or a loss of market confidence, the rating agency said.

Fitch removed the company from its 'rating watch negative' list, saying risks related to its liquidity and funding had moderated and affirmed its rating for Long-Term Foreign- and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings at 'BBB-'.

While Adani Energy operates independently, governance concerns at the Adani Group level could still impact its capital market access and liquidity, Fitch said.

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)

(([email protected];))

March 2 (Reuters) - India's infrastructure-focussed Adani Group has revived plans for major investments in the U.S., the Financial Times reported on Sunday.

The business group has reactivated potential plans to fund projects in sectors such as nuclear power and utilities as well as an east coast port, the report said, citing four people close to group founder and chair Gautam Adani.

(Reporting by Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard)

(([email protected]; +91 7362903319;))

BENGALURU, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Diary of India economic, corporate events on Jan. 23

ECONOMIC, CORPORATE .BSE500 EVENTS:

NTS - 'No time scheduled', AMC - 'After market close'

(Compiled by Bengaluru Newsroom)

(([email protected]))

Jan 21 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• WINS 250 BILLION RUPEES BHADLA-FATEHPUR HVDC PROJECT

Source text: ID:nBSE7FhMHS

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

Jan 20 (Reuters) - REC Limited RECM.NS:

• RAJASTHAN PART I POWER TRANSMISSION TRANSFERRED TO ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS

• CONSIDERATION INCLUDES 150 MILLION RUPEES PROFESSIONAL FEE, REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES

Source text: ID:nBSE97Yqh6

Further company coverage: RECM.NS

(([email protected];;))

Jan 17 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• EXECUTION OF SPA FOR ACQUIRING 100% EQUITY SHARES OF SUPERHEIGHTS INFRASPACE

• UNIT TO ACQUIRE 100% EQUITY SHARES OF SUPERHEIGHTS INFRASPACE

• ACQUISITION COST SET AT 4.75 BILLION RUPEES

Source text: ID:nBSE6bQDcx

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

Dec 17 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS LTD - ACQUISITION BY INCORPORATION OF WOS ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS STEPELEVEN

Source text: ID:nBSE98ZXph

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];))

Recasts, adds detail on Rajasthan event, background on U.S. indictments

Dec 9 (Reuters) - India's Adani Group will invest over 7.5 trillion rupees ($88.5 billion) in the northwestern state of Rajasthan, a top executive said on Monday, marking the group's first major investment since the U.S. indictment of its billionaire founder.

The announcement, at an event in Jaipur city attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, comes less than a month after U.S. authorities accused founder Gautam Adani and some top executives of being part of a scheme to pay bribes worth $265 million to secure Indian power supply contracts.

The group has called the charges "baseless".

The indictment has sparked political wrangling in India as many opposition parties accuse Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of favouring Adani and blocking investigations against him in India, allegations both have denied.

Modi's BJP has said it had no reason to defend Adani and that the law will take its course.

The allegations have raised concerns among some partners and investors of the group, with at least one Indian state reviewing its power deal with Adani, and TotalEnergies TTEF.PA halting further investments in the conglomerate.

However, Adani's finance chief said last month that the group's investment plans remained on track.

The latest investments - valued at more than half of the group's $159 billion valuation - will be made in sectors including renewable energy, cement and logistics, said Karan Adani, managing director of Adani Ports APSE.NS.

Over 50% of the investments will be made over the next five years, Adani added.

Adani plans to set up four new cement plants to build additional capacity of six million metric tons per annum.

The group also plans to build the world's biggest integrated green energy ecosystem involving 100 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy, two million tonnes of hydrogen and 1.8 GW of pumped hydro storage, Adani added.

The group's clean energy arm Adani Green ADNA.NS is already building an energy park in the western state of Gujarat with a production capacity of 50 GW by 2030.

($1 = 84.7200 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR. Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Mark Potter)

(([email protected]; (+91 9945291420); Reuters Messaging: [email protected]))

Dec 5 (Reuters) - Adani Energy Solutions Ltd ADAI.NS:

• ADANI ENERGY SOLUTIONS LTD - RECEIVES LOI FOR 20 GW TRANSMISSION SYSTEM IN RAJASTHAN

Source text: ID:nBSEc2HQs4

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];;))

Adds details, background

Dec 3 (Reuters) - Several entities linked to the Adani Group have approached the India markets regulator seeking to settle a case that accuses them of violating public shareholding regulations at some listed companies, the Economic Times reported on Tuesday.

The Securities and Exchange Board Of India (SEBI) had sent notices to Adani Enterprises ADEL.NS, the group's flagship company, as well as Adani Power ADAN.NS, Adani Ports APSE.NS and Adani Energy ADAI.NS alleging they had wrongfully categorised the shareholding of certain entities.

The groups' breaches of a minimum public shareholding requirement date back to 2020 and the SEBI had sought to recover about 25 billion rupees ($295 million) from the entities, ET said.

Adani Enterprises and one of its directors, Vinay Prakash, as well as an Ambuja Cements ABUJ.NS director, Ameet Desai, have proposed a settlement, ET reported.

Another proposal for a 2.8-million-rupees ($33,035) settlement is from Emerging India Focus Funds (EIFF), a Mauritius-based foreign portfolio investor that the SEBI says is linked to Vinod Adani, brother of Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, ET said.

The report did not have information regarding other settlement applications.

The proposals were submitted last week in response to a show-cause notice issued by the SEBI on Sept. 27 to about 30 Adani Group entities, the newspaper reported.

The entities have contested the charges in response to the notice and the settlement application is only a precautionary measure, ET added, citing a source.

The Adani Group did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Last month, U.S. authorities accused Gautam Adani and some top executives in the Adani Group of being part of a scheme to pay bribes of $265 million to secure Indian power supply contracts and of misleading U.S. investors during fund raises there, charges the group has called "baseless".

($1 = 84.7580 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Anuran Sadhu and Sethuraman NR in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)

(([email protected]; +91 8697274436;))

NEW DELHI, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Both houses of Indian parliament were suspended on Monday after disruptions by opposition groups demanding a discussion on bribery allegations against the Adani Group and communal tensions in a northern town.

Parliament was similarly adjourned for all of last week as opposition parties, led by the main opposition Congress, demanded a discussion on the indictment of Adani chair Gautam Adani by U.S. authorities.

(Reporting by Sakshi Dayal; Editing by YP Rajesh)

(([email protected];))

By Krishna N. Das

DHAKA, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Bangladesh wants to sharply lower prices under a power purchase deal with India's embattled Adani Group unless it is cancelled by a court, which has called for an investigation into the 25-year deal, its de facto energy minister told Reuters on Sunday.

Adani Group founder Gautam Adani is already facing allegations by U.S. authorities that he was part of a $265 million bribery scheme in India, charges he has denied, even as one Indian state reviews a power deal with the group and France's TotalEnergies TTEF.PA pauses its investments.

In Bangladesh, based on an appeal by a lawyer demanding the power deal's potential cancellation, the High Court last week ordered a committee of experts to examine the contract under which Adani supplies power from a $2 billion coal-fired plant in eastern India. The investigation is expected to be concluded by February, when the court is due to make its order.

The deal was signed in 2017 by Adani and a government entity under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who was ousted this year amid a popular uprising and accusations of widespread corruption. Supply from the 1,600 megawatt plant, which uses expensive imported coal, started last year and meets about a tenth of Bangladesh's consumption.

"Renegotiate in case of anomalies in the contract. Cancel only in case of irregularities such as corruption and bribery," Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, Bangladesh's power and energy adviser, said in an interview in his office.

"Both based on the findings of the court-ordered investigations."

He said some issues, such as Bangladesh not benefiting from some Indian tax exemptions to the power plant, have already been flagged to Adani and could partly form the basis of a deal renegotiation.

Adani did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the weekend. Adani Power Ltd ADAN.NS said in its latest annual report that the plant in India's Jharkhand state would provide Bangladesh uninterrupted, reliable and affordable electricity and "significantly reduce the average cost" for the end consumer.

Khan said the U.S. corruption allegations against Adani themselves may not have any bearing on the Bangladeshi deal.

A separate committee formed by Bangladesh's interim government is already probing the Adani deal and six other power contracts with the aim to ensure the investigations "will be acceptable in international negotiations and arbitration", said a government statement.

At 14.02 taka a unit, Adani charged the highest rate for Indian-generated power to Bangladesh in the 2022/23 fiscal year, compared with an average price of 8.77 taka ($0.0737), according to the state-run Bangladesh Power Development Board.

Adani's rate fell to 12 taka a unit in 2023/24, still 27% higher than the rate of India's other private producers and as much as 63% more than Indian state-owned plants, Reuters has reported.

The retail price in Bangladesh is 8.95 taka per unit, which results in an annual power subsidy bill of 320 billion taka for the exchequer, Khan said.

"Because the prices are high, the government has to subsidise," Khan said. "We would like power prices, not only from Adani, to come down below the average retail prices."

Bangladesh, however, will keep paying for the power it is importing from Adani, he said. The company had recently halved its supply because of a delay in payment.

Khan said Bangladesh has enough domestic capacity to meet its needs, though some plants are currently idle or generating below capacity because of a shortage of gas or other reasons.

"When Adani cut their supply to half, nothing happened," he said. "We will not allow any power producer to blackmail us."

($1 = 119.0000 taka)

(Reporting by Krishna N. Das in Dhaka; Additional reporting by Maksud Un Nabi; editing by David Evans)

(([email protected]; https://twitter.com/krishnadas56 ;))

NEW DELHI, Nov 29 (Reuters) - The lower house of India's parliament was suspended temporarily on Friday for a fourth day in a row this week following disruptions as opposition lawmakers sought a discussion on the allegations against Adani Group.

U.S. authorities last week accused Group Chairman Gautam Adani and seven others from the company of being part of a $265 million scheme to bribe Indian officials, and of misleading U.S. investors while raising funds there.

The ports-to-power conglomerate has termed the allegations "baseless" and said it would seek "all possible legal recourse".

(Reporting by Sakshi Dayal; Editing by Kim Coghill)

(([email protected];))

Adds quotes, background

NEW DELHI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Both houses of Indian parliament were suspended temporarily on Thursday within minutes of opening as opposition lawmakers disrupted proceedings for the third day this week seeking a discussion on allegations against the Adani Group.

U.S. authorities have accused Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and managing director of Adani Green, Vneet S. Jaain, of being part of a scheme to pay bribes of $265 million to secure Indian solar power supply contracts, and misleading U.S. investors during fund raises there.

"We want a discussion on this in parliament. It is going to be the third day that we are demanding a reply from the prime minister" on the Adani issue, Manickam Tagore, a lawmaker from the main opposition Congress party, which has been leading the protests against the business group, told news agency ANI.

Many of India's opposition parties accuse Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of favouring Adani and blocking investigations against him in India, accusations both have denied.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who has been a vocal critic of Adani, said Gautam Adani, 62, should be arrested.

While the government has not made any comment on the indictment, Modi's BJP has said it had no reason to defend Adani, adding that the party was not against industrialists and considered them partners in nation-building efforts.

"Let him defend himself," BJP spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal said on Tuesday, adding that the law would take its course.

(Reporting by Shilpa Jamkhandikar; Editing by YP Rajesh)

(([email protected];))

By Nuzulack Dausen

DAR ES SALAAM, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Tanzania plans to honour its contracts with an Adani Group unit despite a U.S. indictment of its billionaire chairman Gautam Adani on accusations of bribery and fraud, a senior official at the ports authority said.

Adani was indicted for fraud last week and arrest warrants were issued for him and his nephew for their alleged roles in a $265 million scheme to bribe Indian officials to secure power-supply deals. Adani Group has denied the accusations.

In May, Tanzania entered into a 30-year concession agreement with Adani Ports, a unit of Adani Group, to operate a container terminal in its Dar es Salaam port, known as Container Terminal 2.

Adani Ports also struck a share purchase agreement for a 95% stake in state-owned Tanzania International Container Terminal Services for $95 million.

"We don't have any problems with anyone. Everything we are doing is according to our laws and agreements," Tanzania Ports Authority Director General Plasduce Mbossa told Reuters late on Tuesday when asked about the contracts' status.

"For contracts we have, we don’t have such claims (of wrongdoing). If there are other people who are taking actions, then they are doing so according to their reasons."

Last week in neighbouring Kenya, President William Ruto scrapped a deal signed with a unit of Adani to build power transmission lines.

He also cancelled a proposal to add a second runway at the Jomo Kenyatta international airport and upgrade the passenger terminal in exchange for a 30-year lease.

(Reporting by Nuzulack Dausen; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Bhargav Acharya and Jan Harvey)

(([email protected]; Reuters Messaging: [email protected]))