Apollo LogiSolutions to raise $100-120 million in two months

Edelweiss to advise the company to rope in strategic and financial investors

Logistics provider Apollo LogiSolutions is looking at vertical integration and has set aside about Rs 200 crore for acquiring companies in the same space.

PSS Prasad, president, Apollo LogiSolutions, said the company had a target of increasing its revenues to around Rs 3,000 crore by 2020 from about Rs 900 crore now, on the back of organic and inorganic growth, which is expanding sales and profits (organic) and mergers and acquisitions.

Four years ago the company’s revenues were around Rs 70 crore and joint ventures accounted for around 50 per cent of those, according to him.

This is expected to increase to around 60 per cent by 2020.

In six months, the company hopes to close two deals: One in India in the 3PL space (third-party logistics), and another in Africa on freight forwarding.

To take advantage of the goods and services tax (GST), Apollo is planning to invest Rs 150-200 crore in setting up warehouses in the country. To start with, it will set up three — in Gujarat, on the Tamil Nadu-Andhra Pradesh border, and in the northern part of the country. The company has acquired land for the first two.

The company plans to increase the warehouse space to around five million square feet from the current 500,000 square feet in three years. The expansion includes one million square feet outside India.

It is in the final stages of discussion with strategic and financial investors to raise $100-120 million (Rs 680-816 crore) to fund the expansion and has roped in investment banking services provider Edelweiss for the fundraising.

The company has not reckoned on an initial public offering in the next three years, he said. Currently, 20 per cent of the revenues comes from the automobile and renewable segments, another 20 per cent from terminal operations.

The company is planning to get into non-petroleum liquid bulk transportation by rail. Apollo will lease rakes for this.

Raaja Kanwar, son of Apollo Tyres Chairman Onkar S Kanwar, heads the firm.