Adani group stocks settle lower; AGEL tumbles 7%

Shares of Adani Enterprises tumbled 4.78% to Rs 2,149.80 and Adani Energy Solutions dropped 3.79% to Rs 601.15.

New Delhi: Shares of all Adani group firms ended lower on Tuesday, with Adani Green Energy tumbling 7 per cent, in line with weak trend in equities.

The stock of Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) slumped 7.05 per cent to Rs 899.40 on the BSE.

Shares of Adani Enterprises tumbled 4.78 per cent to Rs 2,149.80 and Adani Energy Solutions dropped 3.79 per cent to Rs 601.15.

The stock of Adani Total Gas Ltd tanked 3.50 per cent, Adani Ports declined 3.23 per cent, Adani Wilmar went lower by 2.44 per cent, Ambuja Cements dropped 2.30 per cent, Adani Power (2.04 per cent), Sanghi Industries (1.91 per cent), ACC (1.37 per cent) and NDTV (0.09 per cent).

The 30-share Sensex declined 105.79 points or 0.13 per cent to settle at 80,004.06 and the NSE Nifty dipped 27.40 points or 0.11 per cent to 24,194.50.

French energy giant TotalEnergies SE on Monday said it was not aware of the corruption investigation its partner Adani group's founder chairman was facing in the US and that it is pausing fresh investments in the conglomerate pending the outcome of the charges.

Separately, GQG Partners, which made huge bets on Adani group post hammering it saw in the aftermath of the Hindenburg report last year, said the indictment is against individuals only and the bet it made on the group holds good.

TotalEnergies is one of the biggest foreign investors in billionaire Gautam Adani's business empire and had previously taken stakes in the group's renewable energy venture Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) and city gas unit Adani Total Gas Ltd (ATGL).

In a statement, the French firm said it has learnt of US authorities indicting Gautam Adani and two other executives for allegedly paying USD 265 million bribes to Indian officials to secure solar power supply contracts for AGEL.

"This indictment does not target AGEL itself, nor any AGEL-related companies," TotalEnergies said. "Until such time when the accusations against the Adani group individuals and their consequences have been clarified, TotalEnergies will not make any new financial contribution as part of its investments in the Adani group of companies." Adani group has dismissed the allegations brought in the US court as baseless and has said it would seek all possible legal recourse.

TotalEnergies holds a 19.75 per cent stake in AGEL. It also has a 50 per cent stake in three joint ventures that produce electricity from sunlight and wind with AGEL.

The French firm also holds a 37.4 per cent stake in ATGL, which retails CNG to automobiles and pipes natural gas to households for cooking.

Embattled billionaire Gautam Adani's group on Tuesday said TotalEnergies' decision to pause new investments in the group will not have any material impact on operations and growth plans as no new funding was under discussion.

Moody's has cut the outlook on the ratings of seven Adani entities to 'negative' from 'stable', citing the US indictment of Gautam Adani and others on alleged bribery charges, while Fitch Ratings put some bonds of the conglomerate on negative watch.