Vedanta Chairman bats for transformation amid record FY25 performance, demerger push

Mining conglomerate
Vedanta Ltd
chairman
Anil Agarwal
has unveiled a transformation roadmap, positioning the company as a global leader in transition metals, critical minerals, energy, and technology under its next growth phase, dubbed '
Vedanta 2.0
'.
In his address to stakeholders in the group's annual report, Agarwal said the company is at an inflection point, supported by a record financial year, strong cost leadership, and plans to unlock value through its ongoing demerger exercise, which is nearing completion. He also underscored the importance of the group's strategic realignment, focus on vertical integration, and growing role in India's infrastructure buildout and energy transition.
"FY 2024-25 stands out as a year of strong performance for Vedanta. We delivered our highest-ever revenue of Rs 1,50,725 crore, while our EBITDA jumped 19 per cent to Rs 43,541 crore, delivering industry-leading margins of 34 per cent - all achieved in a challenging environment," he said in his letter to stakeholders.
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Also highlighting the importance of the company's focus on driving operational excellence across the group, Agarwal said, "Our aluminium and zinc operations maintained their industry-leading cost positions, ranking in the top quartile and decile, respectively, of the global cost curve. Zinc International, Iron Ore, and Steel businesses also delivered robust improvements, reinforcing Vedanta's leadership across multiple sectors."
Vedanta undertook several significant corporate actions in FY25 to strengthen its cash reserves. This includes Rs 8,500 crore raised through a qualified institutional placement and an offer for sale at
Hindustan Zinc
, raising an additional Rs 3,134 crore, which allowed it at one point during the year to sit on a cash war chest of Rs 33,000 crore.
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Agarwal highlighted that the group's committed deleveraging targets - both at the Vedanta Limited level and its parent Vedanta Resources have been met ahead of the targeted timeline. "At Vedanta Resources Limited (VRL), we deleveraged our balance sheet by USD 0.7 billion this year, bringing the total debt reduction to USD 4 billion over the last three years, surpassing our earlier stated targets.
ICRA
and CRISIL upgraded Vedanta's long-term rating from 'AA-' to 'AA'...watch with developing implications, and S&P Global raised VRL's rating by three notches to 'B+' with stable outlook," he said, while referring to the fact that the company's performance in this area hadn't gone unnoticed.
Sharing his views on the company's future trajectory, Agarwal said, "For Vedanta, this is the right moment to transform itself into a natural resources, energy and technology company. Vedanta 2.0 will have a key role in each of the most crucial levers of the economy."
Speaking about the role they play in supporting the growth of the Indian economy, he said, "Our diverse portfolio of 15 major commodities, oil & gas, and renewable energy is not only inextricably linked to the growth and development of the Indian economy, but also intricately tied to the global goal to embrace a low carbon future."
The company's ongoing demerger exercise, which is nearing completion and is widely expected to unlock shareholder value, also found mention in the Chairman's letter. "We are in the process of demerging our business verticals to create a pure-play model, which is nimble and fine-tuned to even faster growth and unlocking of massive value."
Agarwal highlighted the timely completion of all capex projects, continued deleveraging, interest cost reduction, and successful completion of the demerger scheme as the priorities for FY26.
Speaking on the company's growth ambition, he highlighted the investment of USD 1.5 billion in capex on projects in FY 2024-25, with an additional USD 1.5-1.7 billion of capex investments earmarked for FY 2025-26. "These investments have the capacity to create tens of thousands of new jobs, both directly across our operations and indirectly across the ecosystems that they will support through essential raw materials."
In FY 2024-25, Vedanta's subsidiary Hindustan Zinc became the world's largest integrated zinc producer, delivering record-breaking annual mined metal production of 1,095 kilo-tonnes (kt) and refined metal production of 1,052 kt. Vedanta's aluminium business also achieved its highest annual metal production of 2,422 kt.

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