On Monday, Aegis Vopak Terminals, India's largest tank terminal operator, launched its ₹2,800-crore IPO. This marks a significant capital market debut for the company, which is central to India's liquid and gas storage infrastructure.

Key Highlights

• Aegis Vopak Terminals secured ₹1,260 crore from 32 anchor investors, allocating over 5.36 crore equity shares at ₹235 each. 
• Prominent global and domestic funds participated, including American Funds, HDFC Mutual Fund, and SBI General Insurance.

Established in May 2022 as a joint venture between Aegis Logistics and Vopak India BV, a division of the multinational corporation Royal Vopak, the company has grown quickly, building two LPG terminals and 18 liquid terminals at six ports. Petroleum products, vegetable oils, lubricants, chemicals, and gases such as butane, propane, and LPG are all stored in these terminals.

Currently, about 54.36% and 45.64% of its revenues come from gas and liquid storage, respectively. By FY26, a new ammonia storage facility should be up and running.

Aiming to lower debt and finance a ₹671-crore expansion of the company's cryogenic LPG terminal in Mangalore, the IPO is priced between ₹223 and ₹235 per share. The issue will allow Aegis Vopak to become debt-free if it is fully subscribed. As of March 31, 2025, its outstanding borrowings totaled ₹2,474.2 crore. The issue closes on Wednesday.

Aegis Vopak has experienced a significant financial turnaround since the joint venture was formed.

Its net debt-to-equity ratio fell sharply to 1.32x by the end of 2024, from a staggering 51.93x in FY22, indicating aggressive deleveraging. Operationally, Ebitda margins increased from 65.2% in FY23 to 74.2% in the nine months through FY25, while net profit margins increased by nearly 300 basis points over FY24.

"This IPO is the final step in deleveraging and preparing for future growth," said Murad Moledina, non-executive director at Aegis Vopak, in an interview with Mint. He added that the company has tripled its liquid capacity and will triple its LPG capacity soon.

"After raising ₹800 crore through a private placement last October, this ₹2,800-crore IPO will help us become debt-free and fund key projects such as the ₹671-crore LPG terminal in Mangalore." "It's all about promoting future infrastructure growth," Moledina explained.

"Their turnaround is structural, rather than cyclical. According to Bajaj Broking's research team, throughput efficiencies, automation, and blue-chip client contracts have structurally increased margins since the JV.

The company's four decades of storage infrastructure experience has resulted in a cost advantage.

Aegis Vopak Terminals built an LPG terminal with 48,000 metric tonnes of storage and 4 million metric tonnes of throughput capacity for ₹450 crore, while Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd. spent ₹1,100 crore for a smaller 30,000 metric tonne terminal handling only 1 million metric tonnes.

"Our model focuses on high asset turnover and low construction costs," Moledina told reporters. "Even with modest volumes, we deliver strong returns due to high operating margins and minimal overheads," he added.

The JV's modular expansion model and global best practices, according to Bajaj Broking, are central to its capital-light strategy.