India's largest business groups are fundamentally changing how they finance mega projects, increasingly bringing in foreign equity partners at the outset to share risk and reduce capital outlay. According to reports from Mint, this approach helps companies pursue multiple capital-intensive expansions while limiting strain on their balance sheets. The strategy is showing up across sectors including renewable energy, metals, data centres and infrastructure, as conglomerates race to expand in businesses requiring billions of dollars in upfront investment.
The trend is exemplified by several high-profile deals. The Adani Group signed a partnership with the United Arab Emirates' IHC Group on 2 July to jointly invest in a planned $11.5 billion entry into aluminium production. Similarly, JSW Steel brought in South Korea's POSCO Holdings as a partner for its planned greenfield steel plant in Odisha before finalizing the land for the project, with the companies announcing the tie-up in August 2024.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) secured a $1 billion commitment from American fund manager TPG in November 2025 for its planned entry into data centres, with reducing capital outlay as an explicitly stated objective. As reported by Mint, TCS stated that bringing in TPG as a strategic investment partner will help drive stronger returns to shareholders, reduce capital outlay, and create long-term value for the data centre platform. The partnership model itself is not new, with Adani having partnered Singapore's Wilmar in 1999 for edible oils and the Tata Group teaming up with Japan's NTT Docomo for GSM telecommunications.
Companies are also bringing in partners after assets are operational but before expansion phases. According to Mint reports, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) sold a 49% stake in its newly-built Vizhinjam trans-shipment port in Kerala to a unit of global shipping major MSC for $539 million, freeing up immediate cash while halving its share of the investment required for the port's planned $1.75 billion expansion.
Viswanathan Rajendran, senior partner at Kearney, noted that Indian conglomerates are increasingly bringing in equity partners at an earlier stage of large capital projects, reflecting India's growing importance as a destination for global industrial and infrastructure capital. The approach allows sponsors to share development risk, strengthen balance sheets, bring in technology or operating expertise, and improve bankability. As reported by Mint, experts suggest this represents Indian conglomerates becoming more disciplined and globally networked in building large platforms, rather than a sign of funding weakness.
