Gautam Adani is an Indian billionaire businessman and the founder and chairman of the Adani Group, a multinational corporation involved in various sectors such as energy, infrastructure, logistics, agribusiness and media.
Adani was born on June 24, 1962, in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, in Jain Family. He did his schooling in Ahmedabad from Sheth Chimanlal Nagindas Vidyalaya school. Adani joined Gujarat University for graduation in commerce, but he was dropped out after one year. Adani has keen interest in business from the very young age.
Early Life
In 1978, at the age of 16, Adani moved to Mumbai to work as a diamond sorter. Gautam Adani’s elder brother Mahasukhbhai Adani invited him to manage the operations of a plastics unit in Ahmedabad in 1981. This marked Gautam Adani’s entry into the business world. The company was called Shantigram, and it was involved in the manufacture of plastic packaging products. Gautam Adani was able to turn the struggling business around and increase its profitability.
Career
After gaining experience in the plastics industry, he later ventured into other businesses and founded Adani Enterprises Limited in 1988. Adani Enterprises Limited started as a commodity trading company and later diversified into other sectors such as agro products, metals and textiles.
In 1994, the Government of Gujarat announced plans to privatize the Mundra Port and invited private players to bid for the management contract. In 1995, Adani Enterprises won the bid and was awarded the contract to manage the port for a period of 30 years. At the time, the Mundra Port was a small, underdeveloped port that handled only a limited amount of cargo. However, Gautam Adani saw the potential for the port to become a major hub for trade in India and began investing heavily in its development. Under Adani’s leadership, the Mundra Port became the largest commercial port in India and one of the most technologically advanced ports in the world. Today, it is operated by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ), which is a subsidiary of the Adani Group, and handles a wide range of cargo including coal, crude oil, containers, and automobiles.
In 2006, Adani entered the power generation business by establishing Adani Power. The company was established with the aim of becoming a major player in India’s rapidly growing power sector. Adani Power has since developed several thermal and renewable energy projects across India and has become one of the largest private power producers in the country.
In 2015, Adani founded Adani Green Energy. AGEL has a total renewable energy capacity of over 15,000MW, making it one of the largest renewable energy companies in the world.
In February 2022, Gautam Adani became Asia’s richest person, surpassing Mukesh Ambani, After six months he became 3rd richest person in the world.
Newyork based investing firm Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of engaging in fraudulent activities, including overvaluing its assets, inflating invoices, and taking advantage of opaque accounting practices. The report led to a significant drop in the share price of some Adani Group companies and led Adani dropping from the 3rd richest person in the world to 22nd.
Adani has been described as being close to the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, it’s worth noting that the relationship between Modi and Adani has also faced criticism, Some have accused Modi of showing favoritism towards the Adani Group, and there have been allegations of corruption and crony capitalism in some of the Group’s dealings.
Gautam Adani Family
Gautam Adani Parents
Gautam Adani was born in Jain family. His father Shantilal Adani, was a textile merchant and his mother Shanti Adani was a homemaker.
Adani elder brother Vindo Adani is a business man and he was the shareholder in Adani Group.
Wife
Gautam Adani Married Preeti Adani, She is the chairman of Adani Foundation. Before marriage she worked as a dentist.
Children
Gautam Adani has two sons named Karan Adani and Jeet Adani. Karan Adani is involved in the family business and serves as the CEO of Adani Ports. Jeet Adani serves as the Executive Director of Adani Group. He has been actively involved in the development of the Group’s renewable energy business
Networth
As of 2023, Gautam Adani Estimated worth approaximately $43 billions.
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