THE NEW VEDANTA

HAVING NAVIGATED A COMPLEX RESTRUCTURING ANIL AGARWAL IS READY TO WRITE VEDANTA'S NEXT GROWTH CHAPTER. CAN HIS MOST AMBITIOUS PLAN YET DELIVER?

- BY KRISHNA GOPALAN

WE CHOOSE DIFFICULT businesses, but they are also the right businesses to be in,” says Anil Agarwal.

Few sectors test that conviction like natural resources, where fortunes are shaped as much by commodity cycles and regulation as by operational execution. Agarwal, the founder of the Vedanta Group, has spent decades navigating both. Now, after restructuring Vedanta Ltd into five separate listed companies, he is preparing for his next big wager—a $20-billion investment plan over the next three-five years, funded largely through internal cash generation.

Based in London, he makes time in Mumbai for a chat with Business Today on the eve of public listing of the new companies. This follows a demerger of Vedanta Ltd, the listed entity that he heads as the Non-Executive Chairman. The stated rationale is unlocking shareholder value, though reducing debt at Vedanta Resources—the holding company—is equally critical.

Agarwal is known for his ambition and tenacity. It’s no different this time. He believes each of the five listed entities—Vedanta Aluminium, Vedanta Iron & Steel, Vedanta Oil & Gas, Vedanta Power and Vedanta Ltd—can become a $100-billion revenue company.