Brookfield to buy 25% stake in BC Jindal’s packaging biz

Mumbai: Canadian asset manager Brookfield has agreed to acquire a 25% stake in the packaging films business of the B C Jindal Group in a Rs 2,000 crore deal that further fuels this year’s private equity investments in India.
The group will transfer the packaging films business from the BSE-listed Jindal Poly Films (JPFL) to a wholly-owned subsidiary via a slump sale, after which Brookfield will invest in the arm.Slump sale means transfer of a business of a company for a lump-sum, without assigning any values to individual assets and liabilities of the entity.
The packaging films business accounted for 85% of Jindal Poly Films revenue (Rs 4,082 crore) in FY21. After demerger, the listed entity will be left with non-woven fabrics, which find application in hygiene and baby diapers, and some other corporate assets. Toronto-based Brookfield, which has been present in India for over 11 years and has assets under management of over $20 billion here, will get two seats on the board of JPFL Films, the entity which will house the packaging films business. This is one of the largest private equity transactions in India’s packaging sector.