Gautam Adani’s ports and logistics firm has introduced plans to repay some $605mn of borrowing and minimize spending, because the beneath fireplace billionaire rushes to shore up investor confidence.

The corporate, probably the most broadly traded in Adani’s enterprise empire, has been hit by a brutal sell-off triggered by a short-seller report that highlighted Adani Group’s rising debt pile whereas alleging “brazen” accounting fraud and inventory manipulation on the conglomerate, which ranges from logistics to airports and electrical energy.

Adani Group has strenuously denied the allegations, however the ensuing inventory market rout knocked greater than $110bn off the conglomerate’s market worth. Shares in Adani Ports and Particular Financial Zone (Apsez) are about 27 per cent decrease than earlier than US short-seller Hindenburg Analysis revealed its report final month.

Apsez’s announcement comes a day after the Adani household stated it had paid off a $1.1bn mortgage pledged in opposition to firm shares some 20 months upfront.

“When your shares have fallen 70 per cent that clearly creates stress,” stated Anish Teli, managing companion at QED Capital Advisors in Mumbai. “Adani is eager to appease overseas traders particularly as he’s attempting to develop their picture globally . . . they’re clearly attempting to place that to relaxation.”

Alice Wang, Asia ex-Japan portfolio supervisor at Quaero Capital in London, stated these actions “replicate the stress to appease investor unease in regards to the group’s extraordinarily excessive leverage, significantly in not too long ago tighter liquidity circumstances”.

Wang added that the strikes additionally mirrored “the dangers from loans backed by belongings whose valuation multiples have far prolonged their fundamentals. Even after the 57 per cent drop from peak, Adani Enterprises nonetheless trades at 255 occasions worth to earnings”.

Karan Adani, Apsez chief government, stated on Tuesday: “We’re contemplating whole mortgage compensation and prepayment of round [Rs50bn ($605mn)]” for the yr ending March 2024.

He stated this may “considerably enhance” the corporate’s internet debt to earnings ratio, which is at present 3-3.5 occasions earnings, and “convey it nearer to 2.5 occasions by March [20]24”.

Apsez additionally stated it could halve capital expenditure for the upcoming fiscal yr to Rs40bn-Rs45bn, from Rs86bn for the yr ending this March.

Apsez is India’s largest personal port firm, controlling practically one-quarter of India’s cargo market, and is the jewel in Adani’s enterprise empire.

Though third-quarter operational income was up 18 per cent yr on yr, to Rs47.9bn from Rs40.7bn, internet earnings fell yr on yr to Rs13.16bn, 16 per cent down on the earlier yr.

The corporate stated the revenue fall was due to larger losses on overseas alternate in contrast with the identical quarter in 2022. Its consolidated quarterly earnings earlier than curiosity, tax, depreciation and amortisation, which excluded the overseas alternate influence, had been up 15 per cent to Rs30bn.

Apsez expects earnings this yr of between Rs122bn and Rs126bn.