United Arab Emirates’ largest premium developer Emaar, which is credited with building Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall, is in talks with the Adani group to sell its India business.
The deal, which could be struck at an enterprise valuation of $1.4-1.5 billion (₹13,000 crore), is expected to expand the Adani group’s realty footprint in the country as Emaar India has a large portfolio of residential and commercial spaces across Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Mohali, Lucknow, Indore and Jaipur.
While the Indian conglomerate is more widely known for its businesses around core sectors such as infrastructure and energy, the privately held realty business began 14 years ago with Shantigram township in Ahmedabad.
The vertical rose to public attention when it managed to win the Dharavi slum redevelopment project in Mumbai.
Following Dharavi, the Adani group also emerged as the highest bidder for the ₹36,000-crore redevelopment of Motilal Nagar in Mumbai, one of the biggest housing redevelopment projects of India’s financial capital, covering 143 acres in Goregaon (W).
In contrast, Emaar had entered the Indian real estate market in 2005 in partnership with India’s MGF Development and invested ₹8,500 crore through the joint venture firm Emaar MGF Land. In April 2016, Emaar Properties decided to end the joint venture through a demerger process.
According to sources, the talks between Dubai-based Emaar Properties and the Adani group are in an advanced stage.
The Adani group and Emaar India declined to comment.
In January this year, Emaar Properties had said, “The company would like to confirm that it is currently in discussion with a few groups in India, including the Adani group, for a potential sale of a stake in Emaar India. The valuation and the other terms of a potential transaction are not finalised.”
Sources said that Emaar Properties is looking to sell stake in the Indian entity but the extent of dilution in shareholding is not decided yet.
According to the latest annual report, Emaar’s sales in India reached an 11-year high in 2024 with 0.2 million units sold. The company’s land bank in India stood at 121.9 million square foot.
However, the international operations of the Dubai-based company, which includes Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia among others, represented only 8 per cent of Emaar’s revenue in 2024.
