Lawsuit reports drag down Lanco Infra shares 9%

Shares of Lanco Infratech fell sharply to underperform broader indices amid concerns over reports relating to a lawsuit filed against the company in Australia. The stock slipped over 9% on Friday even as the Sensex rose 3% on positive global cues.

According to reports, multinational Perdaman Industries has dragged the company to court in Australia, seeking about Rs 17,000-crore compensation for its failure to comply with coal supply pact. Perdaman Industries had entered in to a 25-year pact with Griffin Coal for its upcoming urea plant which Lanco Infratech had acquired for Australian $730 million in March 2011.

The slump in share price took place amid huge volumes as over 65 lakh shares changed hands, compared with the two-week average of 23 lakh shares traded on the BSE. After touching an intra-day low of 21.9, the stock ended 9.3% down at 22.9 on Friday.

(Contributed by Harish Rao)