Adani stocks took another hit on Friday after Kenya cancelled a major power deal with the conglomerate after bribery allegations against the group chairman. Major Adani stocks like Adani Energy Solutions, Adani Power and Adani Enterprises declined during the early trading session.
On Thursday the Kenyan President William Ruto called off the procurement process granting the Adani Group control of Kenya’s main airport.
Adani Green Energy was the hardest hit as the stock plunged by nearly 9 per cent on the National Stock Exchange. "I have directed agencies within the ministry of transport and within the ministry of energy and petroleum to immediately cancel the ongoing procurement," Ruto stated, citing "new information provided by investigative agencies and partner nations."
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The Adani group had been in the process of signing an agreement that would modernise Kenya's main airport in the capital, Nairobi, with an additional runway and terminal constructed, in exchange for the group running the airport for 30 years.
The widely criticised deal had sparked anti-Adani protests in Kenya and a strike by airport workers, who said it would lead to degraded working conditions and job losses in some cases.
The Adani group had also been awarded a deal to construct power transmission lines in Kenya, East Africa's business hub.
Congress Questions Allegations
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Thursday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ties with beleaguered billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani pose a tremendous risk to India's foreign policy ad economic interests overseas.
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In a post on X, Ramesh said Kenya cancelled the airport and power transmission deals with the Adani group after he was indicted by the US for alleged bribery.
"It was expected to happen and it has today. Kenya has cancelled the airport and power transmission deals of the Modani Group.
"The non-biological PM's long-standing relationship with the Adani Group is globally well known – and poses a tremendous risk for India’s foreign policy and economic interests overseas.
"Remember, former Kenyan PM Railo Odinga - who is under attack for favouritism to the Adani Group - admitted that he was introduced to the businessman over a decade ago by the-then CM of Gujarat, who also lobbied aggressively for the A Group," the Congress leader said in his post.
This was not an isolated instance, he said.
At 10:08, the shares of the flagship firm, Adani Enterprises, were trading at Rs 2,106.95 price level, down by 3.51 per cent on NSE.
(With inputs from PTI)
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