Key Takeaways
- • CTC Group has mandated Avendus Capital to sell a minority stake and raise about $50 million to fund growth plans, according to two people familiar with the matter.
- • Hical Technologies is looking to raise a similar amount through a minority stake sale, per the same sources.
- • Balaji Precision Components and Rabwin Industries are in talks for majority stake sales, each seeking a valuation of ₹2,500 crore to ₹3,000 crore, with EY advising on buyer search.
- • Gemsons Precision Engineering promoters are looking to sell a controlling stake at a potential valuation of about ₹1,000-1,200 crore, with EQT, Carlyle, Blackstone and ChrysCapital approached.
- • Private equity interest is shifting from automotive components toward non-automotive precision engineering serving aerospace, defence, oil and gas, power and data centres, with multiple PE-led platforms expected within 12 to 24 months.
Summary
India's family-owned precision engineering and manufacturing businesses are increasingly seeking to institutionalize operations and bring in private equity or strategic partners to scale, according to bankers and industry executives reported by Mint. Companies named in the report include Hical Technologies, CTC Group, Balaji Precision Components, Gemsons Precision Engineering and Rabwin Industries.
CTC Group, founded in 1983 by Ramesh Kumar Agarwalla and Gokul Kumar Agarwalla, has mandated Avendus Capital to sell a minority stake and raise about $50 million for growth plans. Hical, based in Bengaluru and founded by Shashikiran Mullur in 1988, is seeking to raise a similar amount through a minority stake sale. Balaji, founded by Vikash Kumar in 2002 according to Tracxn, and Coimbatore-based Rabwin are in talks for majority stake sales and have engaged EY to find buyers. Both are seeking valuations of ₹2,500 crore to ₹3,000 crore. Balaji's process has gone through several on-off cycles. Private equity firms including Blackstone, EQT and ChrysCapital have evaluated Rabwin as part of a platform strategy to consolidate such businesses.
For Gemsons, promoters are looking to sell a controlling stake in a deal that may value the company at about ₹1,000-1,200 crore, following an earlier Mint report. Initial feelers have gone to EQT, Carlyle, Blackstone and ChrysCapital. EQT and Avendus declined to comment on specific deals, and the other parties did not respond before publication.
KPMG India's Ashish Gulati said the trend began in automotive components, where Indian companies have built global market leadership in precision engineering and metal processing. Global investors including Blackstone, Bain Capital, Carlyle and Warburg Pincus have consolidated businesses into platforms, and Sona Comstar, formerly Blackstone-owned, listed in 2021. Gulati noted that many of these companies serve US and European customers and that diversification away from China is supporting demand. Happy Forgings, Belrise Industries and Sansera Engineering have gone public.
Attention is now moving to non-automotive segments serving oil and gas, power equipment, aerospace and defence, data centres and general engineering. Koushik Bhattacharyya, managing director at Avendus Capital, said qualification with customers can take years, making relationships sticky, and that companies with scale and strong RoCE are highly sought after by PE funds. Gulati said Azad Engineering, Unimech Aerospace and Data Patterns have set valuation benchmarks, and that multiple PE-led platforms are likely in the next 12 to 24 months, while strategic players are focused on organic growth and may tap public markets.
CTC Group, founded in 1983 by Ramesh Kumar Agarwalla and Gokul Kumar Agarwalla, has mandated Avendus Capital to sell a minority stake and raise about $50 million for growth plans. Hical, based in Bengaluru and founded by Shashikiran Mullur in 1988, is seeking to raise a similar amount through a minority stake sale. Balaji, founded by Vikash Kumar in 2002 according to Tracxn, and Coimbatore-based Rabwin are in talks for majority stake sales and have engaged EY to find buyers. Both are seeking valuations of ₹2,500 crore to ₹3,000 crore. Balaji's process has gone through several on-off cycles. Private equity firms including Blackstone, EQT and ChrysCapital have evaluated Rabwin as part of a platform strategy to consolidate such businesses.
For Gemsons, promoters are looking to sell a controlling stake in a deal that may value the company at about ₹1,000-1,200 crore, following an earlier Mint report. Initial feelers have gone to EQT, Carlyle, Blackstone and ChrysCapital. EQT and Avendus declined to comment on specific deals, and the other parties did not respond before publication.
KPMG India's Ashish Gulati said the trend began in automotive components, where Indian companies have built global market leadership in precision engineering and metal processing. Global investors including Blackstone, Bain Capital, Carlyle and Warburg Pincus have consolidated businesses into platforms, and Sona Comstar, formerly Blackstone-owned, listed in 2021. Gulati noted that many of these companies serve US and European customers and that diversification away from China is supporting demand. Happy Forgings, Belrise Industries and Sansera Engineering have gone public.
Attention is now moving to non-automotive segments serving oil and gas, power equipment, aerospace and defence, data centres and general engineering. Koushik Bhattacharyya, managing director at Avendus Capital, said qualification with customers can take years, making relationships sticky, and that companies with scale and strong RoCE are highly sought after by PE funds. Gulati said Azad Engineering, Unimech Aerospace and Data Patterns have set valuation benchmarks, and that multiple PE-led platforms are likely in the next 12 to 24 months, while strategic players are focused on organic growth and may tap public markets.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.