Bank of Baroda top bidder in Jet Airways BKC office insolvency auction

Time of India

a day ago

In a significant development under the ongoing
Jet Airways insolvency
proceedings, public sector lender
Bank of Baroda
has emerged as the highest bidder for the airline's 83,000 sq ft office space in commercial tower
Godrej BKC
in
Mumbai
's business district
Bandra-Kurla Complex
, said people familiar with the development.
The bank has placed a bid of Rs 370 crore, outpacing other contenders in the auction held under the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016.
Last month, a government-appointed liquidator had put an entire office floor owned by the defunct aviation company in this tower on the block with a reserve price of Rs 335.24 crore.
Following this, the liquidator is now expected to inform global alternative investment major
Brookfield Asset Management
that holds the right of first refusal (ROFR) with a 15-day period to match the highest bidder if it intends to acquire the property.
According to sources, Brookfield is likely to exercise the ROFR for the property.
In 2020, as part of
Jet Airways
' insolvency proceedings, Brookfield had acquired the company's two office floors in the building for Rs 490 crore. These offices are currently occupied by marquee tenants including World Bank and PayPal.
The transaction involved around 180,000 sq ft office space spread across the third and fourth floors, along with rights to 138 car parking spaces. Brookfield holds the ROFR for this additional office space too as part of the agreement entered then.
The currently vacant office on the second floor of the commercial tower was sealed by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai owing to unpaid dues. On April 28, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) ordered the civic body to de-seal the property and halt recovery actions.
The asset is being sold on an 'as is where is' basis under the IBC and all applicable taxes, dues and transfer charges will be borne by the successful bidder.
ET's separate email queries to the liquidator Satish Kumar Gupta, Bank of Baroda remained unanswered, while Brookfield declined to comment.
The e-auction for the property along with 70 exclusive car parking slots in the tower was scheduled on June 2 and prospective bidders were expected to submit an earnest money deposit of Rs 32.5 crore.
The Godrej BKC building, a 19-storey commercial tower, was developed in 2011 through a joint venture between
Godrej Properties
and
Jet Airways
.
Jet Airways had originally purchased the land from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority in 2008 for Rs 826 crore before collaborating with Godrej Properties for the project's development.