Latest news with #GIC-backed
Mint
08-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Bain Capital-backed Indian chemicals firm eyes US expansion after key acquisition
Novopor Advanced Science Pvt. Ltd, a Bain Capital portfolio company manufacturing specialty chemicals, is looking to expand its footprint in the US after chalking up its first acquisition in the country. Hyderabad-headquartered Novopor wants to establish itself as a leading global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) in the performance or specialty chemicals and material sciences space, chief executive Radhesh Welling said. 'Now, to be able to do that, we have identified certain unique and relevant capabilities that we need to develop or acquire," Welling said, adding that there was a huge addressable global market for performance chemicals that the company aims to tap. 'We have a huge potential upside here… Unlike agrochem or pharma, it's not a space that is overcrowded." A CDMO provides various services to pharmaceutical companies for drug development and manufacturing. The global specialty chemicals market was valued at $640.8 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $939.7 billion by 2031, according to Statista. India's overall chemical industry was valued at $250 billion, according to a EY report in December. On Wednesday, Novopor announced the acquisition of US-based Pressure Chemical Co., an affiliate of the Belgium-headquartered Minafin Group and a leading provider of high-pressure and specialty chemistry services, for an undisclosed amount. Also read | Why Trump's trade war with China is bad news for Indian chemical exporters '(Pressure Chemical) has some very unique capabilities with respect to specialized high-end polymerization, organic synthesis, etc… A lot of these capabilities are just completely absent in India," Welling said. 'The main reason was to acquire some of these unique and relevant capabilities. By doing that we can actually strengthen our overall value proposition to the customers we are looking to target in the performance chemical and electronic chemical space," he added. Novopor does not directly export to the US, although a large number of its clients are based in the US, Welling said. The Pressure Chemical acquisition will help build trust in the US market as Novopor looks to target other global customers, he added. Pressure Chemical has a mid-sized manufacturing presence in the US, which the company might evaluate for scaling up later, Welling said. Novopor is also evaluating other strategic acquisitions. 'There are a few in Europe, few in India, but most of them are in the US… There are things in the pipeline in various stages," Welling said. In 2023, US-based Bain Capital Private Equity acquired a majority stake in Novopor, previously known as Porus Labs, for an undisclosed amount. Also read | GIC-backed Asia Healthcare Holdings to acquire Dr Dangs Labs Building partnerships Some of the challenges to global expansion in the specialty chemicals space include the capabilities companies can offer, Welling said, adding that intellectual properties (IP) are closely held by customers. A majority of performance chemical companies are focused on specific markets. A majority of performance chemical companies are focused on specific markets, and as a result there is a gap in the capabilities companies can offer, Welling said, adding that intellectual properties (IP) are closely held by customers. 'They are very reluctant to actually give this IP out. They have partnerships with some of the local companies in the US, like the one that we acquired, but typically, they don't like to work with companies outside of the Western hemisphere," Welling said. 'We have identified certain customers who potentially we would like to partner with, and we have identified certain sets of capabilities which are very relevant for these customers," he added. Novopor aims to grow profitably at an annual growth rate of about 20% over the next few years, Welling said. Crisil Ratings expects Novopor's revenue to have grown to ₹1,100-1,200 crore in 2024-25 from ₹763 crore in 2023-24. 'Operating margins also witnessed an uptick to above 20% backed by scaling up and higher contribution from high margin products," Crisil Ratings said in a February 28 note. Novopor hasn't yet filed its financial statements for 2024-25. Some of the largest Indian companies in the specialty chemicals industry include SRF Ltd, which posted a revenue of ₹13,149.7 crore for FY24 (of which 48% came from its chemicals business), Aarti Industries Ltd ( ₹7,012 crore revenue in FY24), and PI Industries Ltd ( ₹7,665.8 crore revenue in FY24). Welling expects the Indian specialty chemicals industry to see an increase in demand in about a year or two because of the ongoing trade war between the US and China. 'Companies would look at reliable Indian partners as part of a long-term strategy," he said. 'If you also have an Indian company that has a footprint in the US, it's going to be an additional benefit." Also read | Demand for weight loss drugs is growing. Can wellness companies keep up?
Economic Times
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- Economic Times
Ather Energy IPO: From startup to stock market listing
Ather Energy gave up the modest gains it made on its market debut on Tuesday. Shares of the electric scooter manufacturer were trading at Rs 307.08 on the BSE—down 5.58% from the listing price of Rs Tiger Global- and GIC-backed company raised Rs 2,981 crore through its initial public offering (IPO), including a fresh issue of shares worth Rs 2,626 crore. This IPO size was smaller than the Rs 3,100 crore figure originally mentioned in its draft red herring prospectus for the book-built offer. About Ather Energy Founded in 2013 by Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain, Bengaluru-based Ather Energy designs and manufactures electric scooters and related charging infrastructure. It also offers software subscription plans with various service and maintenance benefits, as well as company caters to both B2C and B2B markets, operating at the intersection of energy tech and auto tech. Ather is concentrated mostly in South India, which accounted for 61% of its sales in the nine months to December 2025. Funding and investors According to Tracxn, Ather Energy has secured $502 million across 19 funding rounds since its first raise in February 2014. It became a unicorn in August 2024 following a Rs 600 crore ($71 million) investment from the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF). Key institutional investors include Hero MotoCorp, Tiger Global, and GIC—the latter being the company's largest backer. In total, Ather counts 15 institutional and 21 angel investors. Ahead of its IPO in the dying days of April, Ather had raised Rs 1,340 crore from a group of anchor investors, including State Bank of India, Custody Bank of Japan, Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance, ADIA, Invesco, ICICI Prudential, and Morgan Stanley. Key competitors The company faces stiff competition in the electric two-wheeler space, with Bhavish Aggarwal's Ola Electric being its primary rival. The market leader in the electric two-wheeler space, and the first listed pure-play EV company, Ola Electric had a market share of 34.08% at the end of December 2024, compared to Ather's 10.7%. Ola Electric sold 3.08 lakh units in the first nine months of fiscal year 2025, compared to 1.08 lakh units for Ather Energy. According to Tracxn, Ola Electric has raised a total of $1 billion in funding to notable players in the market include Mumbai-based BGauss, Taiwan's Gogoro, and Motovolt, a startup headquartered in Kolkata. Workforce As of March, Ather Energy employed 1,630 people—marking a 11.9% increase from its headcount in March 2024. Around 46% of its workforce was dedicated to research and development (R&D), as of December 2024, Ather said in the RHP for its IPO. Last month, ET reported that Ather Energy is set to unlock around Rs 530 crore in value for more than 1,300 employees through its employee stock option plan (Esop). The company rolled out the Esop in 2024 with a pool of almost 16.5 million shares. Board of directors Ather's board includes CEO and cofounder Mehta and cofounder Jain. Other key members are Pankaj Sood (head of direct investments, India & Africa at GIC), Niranjan Kumar Gupta (ex-CEO, Hero MotoCorp), and Ram Kuppuswamy (chief procurement and supply chain officer, Hero MotoCorp). Use of IPO funds Ather has outlined how it will use the IPO proceeds: Rs 927.2 crore will go towards establishing a new electric two-wheeler manufacturing facility in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. Rs 40 crore is earmarked for debt repayment. Rs 750 crore will support research and development efforts. Rs 300 crore will be used for marketing activities. These investments are planned for the 2026–2028 financial years.
