Logistics firm Western Carriers' IPO to open on Sep 13

New Delhi: Western Carriers (India) Ltd, a logistics company, plans to raise Rs 500 crore with its upcoming initial share sale, scheduled to open for public subscription on September 13. According to the Red Herring Prospectus (RHP), the IPO of the Kolkata-based company will end on September 18, with the bidding for anchor investors scheduled to open for one day on September 12. Presently, the Initial Public Offering includes a new offering of equity shares totaling Rs 400 crore and a Offer For Sale (OFS) of up to 54 lakh equity shares by the promoter Rajendra Sethia, as stated in the RHP.

Merchant banking sources have indicated that the company's issue size is set at Rs 500 crore. In June, Western Carriers laid out its draft papers for an IPO which includes issuing Rs 500 crore worth of new equity shares and offering 93.29 lakh equity shares through OFS. The fresh issue will raise Rs 163.5 crore, with Rs 152 crore allocated for capital expenditure on commercial vehicles, shipping containers, and reach stackers, while the rest will be used for debt payment and general corporate purposes.

Western Carriers is India's leading private, multi-modal, rail-focused, asset-light logistics company, with a customer base of 1,647 across varied sectors such as metals and mining, FMCG, pharmaceutical, building materials, chemicals, oil and gas, and utilities as of March 2024.

As of March 2024, Western Carriers is the top private logistics company in India, specializing in rail transport and serving 1,647 customers in sectors like metals, FMCG, pharmaceuticals, construction materials, chemicals, oil and gas, and utilities. Tata Steel, Hindalco Industries, Vedanta, BALCO, HUL, Coca-Cola India, Tata Consumer Products, Wagh Bakri, Cipla, Haldia Petrochemicals, MCPI, Gujarat Heavy Chemicals, BCPL, and DHL are among its important clients.

In the fiscal year 2024, the company generated Rs 1,685 crore in revenue from operations, with a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 80 crore. JM Financial and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company are the primary managers handling the issue. There is a plan to list the equity shares on both the BSE and NSE.