How Gautam Adani turned Rs 1 lakh crore of stressed asset deals into a mega infrastructure bet

Billionaire Gautam Adani-led Adani Group’s infrastructure acquisition spree has crossed ₹1 lakh crore, spanning 20 deals across power, ports, airports, transmission and renewables, ranging from insolvency resolutions and debt reduction sales to strategic purchases that have expanded its brownfield footprint.

The deals came as banks worked through stress built up during India’s 2004-08 investment cycle, when lenders extended large loans to power, roads, ports, steel and telecom companies. Project delays, cost overruns and weak financials later pushed several of those borrowers into insolvency, restructuring or asset sales.

Adani Group has acquired at least 20 assets, including infrastructure businesses as well as cement, defence and media assets, for ₹103,006 crore, according to analysts.


Adani’s approach was to combine distressed assets with its existing capabilities in fuel sourcing, power sales, logistics, transmission and project execution. The results have been most visible in thermal power, where several acquired plants moved from low utilisation or losses to higher EBITDA and became bases for further brownfield expansion.

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Power plants became the proving ground

Adani Power’s inorganic portfolio now includes 7.45 gigawatts of thermal capacity, of which more than 7 gigawatts have been rapidly turned around, according to Prabhudas Lilladher. The acquisitions included Udupi Power from Lanco, Raigarh, Raipur, Mahan, Coastal Energen, Lanco Amarkantak, Dahanu and Vidarbha Industries.

“Adani has demonstrated a strong track record of acquiring stressed thermal assets and improving their operating and financial performance by leveraging its fuel-sourcing, power-selling and operating capabilities. Its key acquisitions, including Raipur, Raigarh and Mahan, have achieved significant EBITDA turnarounds,” Prabhudas Lilladher’s Vishal Periwal said.

Raipur’s EBITDA rose from ₹210 crore in FY20, when it was acquired, to ₹2,350 crore in FY26. Raigarh moved from negative EBITDA of ₹100 crore to ₹1,110 crore over the same period. Mahan’s EBITDA nearly tripled from ₹550 crore in FY22 to ₹1,600 crore in FY26.

Following turnaround, these assets are now seeing fresh investments. Raipur, Raigarh, Mahan and Korba are being used for additional brownfield capacity, allowing Adani Power to use existing land, transmission connections and plant infrastructure. That lowers development risk and shortens the route from investment to operating cash flow.

Prabhudas Lilladher estimates that Adani Power’s installed capacity could rise from 18.3 gigawatts in FY26 to about 42 gigawatts by FY32, supported by a 23.72-gigawatt expansion programme costing roughly ₹2 lakh crore. Around 60% of the planned capacity is being developed at brownfield sites.

The company has secured land and ordered equipment for the pipeline. About 56% of the upcoming capacity is tied up under long-term power purchase agreements.

The economics of the new projects are also stronger. The average capacity charge for the under-construction portfolio is ₹3.9 per kilowatt-hour, compared with about ₹1 per kilowatt-hour for the existing operating portfolio.

Jefferies said Adani Power’s management is targeting 45 gigawatts of capacity by FY32. The broker expects EBITDA to grow at a 22% compound annual rate between FY26 and FY30.

Grid and ports playbook

Adani’s port acquisitions followed a similar pattern. The group acquired Dighi Port for ₹705 crore, Krishnapatnam Port for ₹13,675 crore, Karaikal Port for ₹1,485 crore and Gopalpur Port for ₹3,080 crore.

At Karaikal, Adani Ports has committed another ₹850 crore towards upgrades, capacity expansion and a new container terminal.

The strategic value was not limited to the asset’s existing earnings. The ports gave Adani additional locations, cargo relationships and logistics linkages that could be integrated into its wider network.

Adani Ports now targets one billion tonnes of cargo by 2030. The company expects domestic port volumes to reach 850 million tonnes by then, while international port volumes are targeted to triple from a low base.

Jefferies said the “Mundra’s market share gain success story should be replicated across the acquired ports.” Its estimates exclude the acquired additions of Krishnapatnam, Karaikal, Vizhinjam, Gopalpur and Gangavaram when calculating organic volume growth, underscoring the distinction between the existing base and the contribution from acquired platforms.

The group also used stressed infrastructure to expand its position in power transmission and distribution. Adani Energy Solutions acquired Western Region System Strengthening Scheme transmission assets from Reliance Infrastructure for ₹1,000 crore in 2016 and Reliance Infrastructure’s Mumbai integrated power business for ₹18,800 crore in 2017.

Today, the company has more than 14,000 kilometres of transmission lines and more than 23,000 MVA of transformation capacity. Its medium-term annual capex guidance is ₹20,000-25,000 crore. The company also has a ₹1.1 lakh crore near-term transmission bidding pipeline, while smart meter projects worth ₹29,500 crore are under execution.

The acquired distribution and transmission businesses gave Adani Energy Solutions a platform on which to add new lines, smart meters and energy trading operations.

Airports converted rescue capital into long duration assets

The airport business is another example of distressed infrastructure becoming a larger operating platform.

Adani acquired Mumbai International Airport from the GVK Group in 2021 for ₹15,000 crore. The acquisition was followed by the development of an eight-airport portfolio under Adani Airport Holdings.

The platform now handles about 23% of India’s passenger traffic and 29% of its air cargo, according to Motilal Oswal. Navi Mumbai International Airport has added an initial 20 million passengers per year of capacity, while the wider airport network handled about 96 million passengers in FY26.

The transformation is reflected in the capital markets. Adani Airport Holdings has agreed to raise ₹98 billion from Alpha Wave Global, Premji Invest, Temasek and BlackRock-managed funds. Motilal Oswal said the transaction values the airport business at about ₹1.7 lakh crore, equivalent to roughly 44% of Adani Enterprises’ market capitalisation.

The proceeds will fund airport expansion, around 22 million square feet of mixed-use Airport City projects in the first phase, and the expansion of ground handling and other non-aeronautical businesses. The investment is expected to increase the platform’s aggregate annual passenger capacity to about 200 million.

Jefferies described Adani Enterprises’ strategy as an “incubation-to-demerger model.” The group’s earlier platforms, including Adani Ports, Adani Power and Adani Energy Solutions, were built inside the group before becoming independent listed businesses.

The current portfolio includes airports, roads, data centres, defence and new energy.

Renewable assets added another leg

Adani Green Energy also used acquisitions to build scale. The group acquired Essel Green Energy’s solar portfolio for ₹1,300 crore and a 40-megawatt Essel Green solar project for ₹219 crore.

The renewable platform has since moved beyond those assets. Management remains confident of adding 5 gigawatts of capacity in FY27 and is targeting 50 gigawatts by 2030. Battery energy storage capacity is expected to rise from 3.6 gigawatt-hours to more than 10 gigawatt-hours by FY27.

The company added 3.4 gigawatts of solar, 0.7 gigawatts of wind and 1 gigawatt of hybrid capacity in FY26. Jefferies expects installed capacity to reach 44 gigawatts by FY30, compared with the company’s 50-gigawatt target.

Adani Enterprises is now pursuing a much larger investment cycle. Jefferies estimates cumulative investments of about ₹2 lakh crore between FY26 and FY31 across airports, data centres, new energy, roads, defence, copper and other businesses.

Annual capex has risen from about ₹8,500-9,000 crore in 2022 to ₹30,000-35,000 crore in recent years. The company has funded the expansion through preferential issues, qualified institutional placements and rights issues, including a recent ₹15,000 crore QIP and the roughly ₹9,500 crore airport equity raise.

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