INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
last five years.The conglomerate aims to be a zero-net-debt company in 18 months, Asia's richest man told shareholders on Monday
enterprise value of $75 billion
The company will also start preparing to list its retail and telecommunications units within five years, Mr Ambani said.The tycoon is
cleaning up the group's finances following years of spending on his wireless carrier, whose entry in 2016 with free calls and cheap data
upended the industry and spurred a consolidation
The $50 billion plowed into the phone venture, mostly in debt, has raised concerns among analysts including at Credit Suisse Group AG that
Reliance's ballooning borrowings could weigh on growth
Mr Ambani sought to allay those fears."With these initiatives, I have no doubt that your company will have one of the strongest balance
sheets in the world," he said
"We will also evaluate value unlocking options for our real estate and financial investments."Signaling an end to the spending cycle at
Reliance Jio Infocomm, Mr Ambani is setting a new growth path for his group, whose bread-and-butter business has been oil refining and
Walmart."This is a unique business model we are building in partnership with millions of small merchants" and mom-and-pop stores, he said
As part of the plan, Reliance has been forming partnerships and acquiring technology assets
million for the British toy-store chain Hamleys.The new businesses are likely to contribute 50 per cent of Reliance's earnings in a few
years, from about 32 per cent, Mr Ambani said.While the spending on Jio has helped Reliance lure almost 35 crore users in the world's
at the end of March 31, according to Mr Ambani
His plan to carry zero debt would mean the borrowings would fall below the company's cash reserves, a level not seen since 2013.Last week,
Credit Suisse cut its recommendation for Reliance's stock and the price target citing reasons including rising liabilities and finance
S-P BSE Sensex.Reliance's debt is backed by "extremely valuable assets," Mr Ambani said, signaling his group isn't prone to the kind of
troubles that have been plaguing many other corporate borrowers in India
The conglomerate controlled byMukesh Ambani's younger brother, Anil Ambani, has been struggling to pay creditors while his mobile carrier
has slipped into bankruptcy.Apart from the Aramco deal, Reliance also announced a joint venture with BP Plc this month, under which the
crore, Mukesh Ambani said, adding that Reliance will induct "leading global partners" in telecom and retail units in the next few
quarters.Some of the planned offerings revealed by Mukesh Ambani:A new broadband service called Jiofiber will start commercial services from
across India one of the world's largest blockchain networks in the next one yearAfter mobile broadband, Jio to start generating revenues
from Internet of Things and broadband for home, businesses and smaller enterprises by March 2020Reliance is getting ready to roll out the
new commerce platform at a larger scale to capture what Ambani sees as a $700 billion business opportunityReliance Retail aims to be among
the world's top 20 retailers in the next five yearsGet Breaking news, live coverage, and Latest News from India and around the world on
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