JSW Energy to buy 3 power plants from Jaiprakash Power

MUMBAI (Reuters) - JSW Energy Ltd said on Thursday it had agreed to buy three operating power plants from Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd , as it looks to expand its portfolio beyond coal and lignite-based plants.

JSW Energy, controlled by billionaire Sajjan Jindal, will acquire two of Jaiprakash's three hydropower plants in Himachal Pradesh and a thermal power plant in Central India, the company said in a statement.

The three plants together have a combined capacity of 1,891 megawatts, according to the statement.

Jindal, speaking to a television channel, said that the financial terms of the deal were still being worked out, but the deal was "probably the largest in India's power sector to date".

 

In July, a consortium led by Abu Dabhi National Energy Co pulled out of a $1.6 billion deal for the two hydropower plants, citing a change in business strategy.

Like many power and infrastructure companies, Jaiprakash, and parent Jaiprakash Associates Ltd , have been trying to sell assets to pay down the large debts they racked up before a prolonged economic slowdown squeezed revenues and hit profitability.

The JSW announcement comes a day after Jaiprakash said its deal to sell its hydropower business to Reliance Power Ltd had collapsed due to a "difference of commercial aspects".

The news of the Reliance deal falling through sent Jaiprakash Power's shares down 14 percent, while parent Jaiprakash Associates shares plunged 19 percent on Thursday.

Local television channels had earlier reported that JSW was buying all three of Jaiprakash's hydropower plants.

(Reporting by Aman Shah in Mumbai; Editing by Michael Urquhart)