Reliance AGM: Ambani inducts Saudi Aramco chairman on RIL board
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) held its 44th annual general meeting (AGM) on Thursday, during which, the company made several key announcements regarding its telecom, retail, and oil-to-chemicals business. RIL chairperson Mukesh Ambani inducted Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the chairman of Saudi Aramco, as an Independent Director on its board. Al-Rumayyan is also the governor of the Kingdom's $430 billion sovereign wealth fund. Here are more details.
'Al-Rumayyan's joining the beginning of Reliance's internationalization'
During the meeting, Ambani said, "I welcome H.E. Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Chairman of Saudi Aramco and Governor of PIF, to join the Board of Reliance Industries as Independent Director. His joining our Board is also the beginning of the internationalization of Reliance." "I expect our partnership to be formalized in an expeditious manner this year," said Ambani.
Reliance, Aramco initiated talks in 2019 before pandemic hit
In August 2019, Ambani had announced that RIL was holding talks to sell a 20% stake in its oil-to-chemicals business to Saudi Aramco. At the time, a non-binding letter of intent (LOI) signed between the two had placed the value of the business at $75 billion. However, the deal was stalled as the demand for oil had crashed during the pandemic.
Ambani expresses happiness over Reliance's COVID-19 relief efforts
Ambani said, "Our business and financial success since the last AGM have exceeded expectations. But what has given me far greater happiness than our business performance is RIL's humanitarian efforts during these exceedingly difficult times." The scale, severity, and geographical spread of such a humanitarian crisis were unseen in a century. The COVID-19 crisis has brought enormous pain and grief, he said.
Reliance Foundation launched 5 COVID-19 missions: Nita Ambani
Nita Ambani said the Reliance Foundation had announced five missions to fight COVID-19—Mission Oxygen, Mission COVID Infra, Mission Anna Seva, Mission Employee Care, and Mission Vaccine Suraksha. She detailed how Reliance helped expand the number of hospital beds, testing for the virus, ensured an uninterrupted oxygen supply and free-of-cost treatment to aid India's fight against COVID-19. The Ambanis also praised healthcare workers.
Reliance Retail on 'hyper growth trajectory'; to grow 3X
Reliance Retail continues to be an undisputed leader in organized retailing, Ambani said, adding, "We are by far the leader in each category—grocery, electronics, and apparel." He added, "We're committed to growing our business so that we're among the top 10 retailers globally. I'm confident that Reliance Retail is on a hyper growth trajectory to grow at least 3x in the next 3-5 years."
'Reliance Retail continued to deliver industry-leading returns despite challenges'
Ambani said, "Despite challenging and restrictive operating conditions, Reliance Retail continued to deliver industry-leading returns. We added 1,500 new stores, which is amongst the largest retail expansion undertaken by any retailer during this period, taking our store count to 12,711."
