Billionaire Gautam Adani’s group is considering investing in a fleet of passenger vehicles in a bid to list on ride-hailing platforms such as Uber in seven cities where the ports-to-power conglomerate operates airports.
Talks are underway with the US-based ride-hailing company Uber to unveil a plan, the ET reported on Wednesday, citing anonymous sources with direct knowledge of the matter.
Recently, Adani Airports Holding Limited (AAHL), a group company of the Ahmedabad-based conglomerate, and Uber have joined hands to offer passengers a number of passenger-focused initiatives, and Adani Airports now has dedicated pick-up zones for Uber at five of its seven airports.
The financial daily quoted one of the sources as saying, “This is part of the Adani Group’s strategy to build ancillary offerings that support the airport business growth.”
Currently, AAHL manages airports in Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Mangaluru, Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram. Plus, it is developing Navi Mumbai airport which is expected to be operational by 2024.
It is vital to mention in this context that the Adani Group has been pumping in huge money in companies to expand its airport business.
Earlier this month, Adani Defence and Aerospace, the defence manufacturing arm of Adani Group, signed a pact to acquire Air Works, India’s biggest aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) organisation, for an enterprise value of about Rs 400 crore.
In 2021, the conglomerate acquired a 74 per cent stake in Flemingo Travel Retail and its Mumbai Travel Retail unit, which manage duty-free outlets in airports and seaports.
In October 2021, the Adani Group announced that it acquired a 20 per cent stake in Flipkart-owned online travel and hotel booking firm agency Cleartrip.
After the coronavirus pandemic, app-based cab aggregators such as Uber and ola are grappling with the crunch in supply as drivers are staying away.
“For players like Uber and Ola, entry of a large participant in the fleet operator segment could come as a shot in the arm,” another source told the publication.
