Vedanta Demerger Hearing Postponed by NCLT

Mumbai, Oct 8 (PTI) The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Wednesday once again postponed the hearing on Vedanta's demerger proposal to October 29.

On September 17, the Mumbai bench of NCLT had deferred the hearing on the matter till October 8, and also directed Vedanta as well as the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPnG) to file written submissions on the matter within five days.

Earlier on August 20, the tribunal had deferred the hearing on the Vedanta demerger to September 17 as market regulator Sebi was yet to complete the scrutiny of the proposal, while the petroleum ministry had raised certain objections and sought time to present its observations on the scheme.

The counsel representing the ministry had raised objections to the demerger seeking details on the RJ block, and sought clarifications on disclosures.

The counsel said the ministry also wants disclosures on the concealment of facts that includes showing the exploration blocks as Vedanta's assets and details of the loan taken on the basis of those assets among others.

However, Vedanta's counsel stated that the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has cleared the company's plan to restructure its power and metal businesses, which includes Talwandi Sabo Power Ltd (TSPL), after a settlement with EPC contractor Sepco cleared key procedural hurdles.

TSPL, part of Vedanta, had filed a scheme of arrangement before NCLT as part of a wider demerger.

Meanwhile, Sepco Electric Power Construction Corporation on Wednesday withdrew its intervention application after it reached a settlement on September 11.

In its intervention application, Sepco had alleged that TSPL and Vedanta failed to disclose a debt of about Rs 1,251 crore arising from EPC disputes, which, it claimed, would have affected the company's valuation.

Vedanta had filed a scheme of arrangement before NCLT Mumbai bench covering four group companies - Vedanta Aluminium Metal, Talwandi Sabo Power, Malco Energy, and Vedanta Iron and Steel - along with their shareholders and creditors.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has raised no objections to the scheme, though it sought further details on the proposed base metals carve-out. That particular carve-out is no longer part of the current plan, after Vedanta revised its original blueprint.

Initially, the company had outlined a plan to split into six independent entities: Vedanta Aluminium, Vedanta Oil & Gas, Vedanta Power, Vedanta Steel and Ferrous Materials, Vedanta Base Metals, and Vedanta Ltd. The revised scheme, however, retains the base metals business within the parent company.

The demerger was proposed to streamline operations, improve management focus, and unlock shareholder value.

In March this year, the deadline for completing the demerger was extended to September 30, 2025 due to pending approvals from the NCLT and other government bodies.