Essar group co-founder and Chairman Shashi Ruia passes away

“It is with profound grief that we inform of the passing of Shashikant Ruia, Patriarch of the Ruia and Essar Family,” Essar group said in a statement on Tuesday.

“With an unwavering commitment to community upliftment and philanthropy, he touched millions of lives leaving an enduring impact. His humility, warmth, and ability to connect with everyone he met, made him a truly exceptional leader,” the statement added.

An iconic industrialist, Shashikant Ruia, Chairman, Essar group, played a significant role in redefining India’s corporate landscape, laid the foundation of the Essar group and made it a global conglomerate, it said.

“Shashikant Ruia ji was a colossal figure in the world of industry. His visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to excellence transformed the business landscape of India. He also set high benchmarks for innovation and growth. He was always full of ideas, always discussing how we can make our country better. Shashi Ji’s demise is deeply saddening,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his condolence message on X.

Ruia began his career in the family business in 1965 under the guidance of his father, the late Nand Kishore Ruia. Along with brother Ravi, Shashi Ruia laid the foundation of Essar and spearheaded its business strategy, diversification and growth.

Essar journey began in 1969 when Shashi Ruia won a major contract worth Rs 2.3 crore for the construction of an outer breakwater for Chennai Port. In 1991, Essar became India’s first Independent Power Producer and started a 515 MW cycle power plant at Hazira.

Today, Essar Global Fund Limited (EGFL), which owns the businesses the brothers co-founded, is a global investor, owning a number of world-class assets diversified across the core sectors of energy, metals & mining, infrastructure, technology and services. The Fund’s portfolio companies generate aggregate revenues of US $14 billion. These companies operate more than 50 assets spread across the globe, while adhering to international standards of health, safety, environmental protection and corporate governance, according to Essar website.

Essar’s portfolio businesses in the telecom, BPO and oil & gas sectors have attracted more than US $40 billion of monetisation proceeds from global majors, like Vodafone, Rosneft, Trafigura and Brookfield, it said.

Shashi Ruia’s vision saw Essar gain a first-mover advantage in many businesses. When the Indian telecom sector was opened up for private participation, Essar was among the first companies to offer mobile telephony services, it said. He also set up a steel complex, oil refinery and a shipping company.

However, two of Essar’s big companies set up by the Ruia brothers were sold off a couple of years ago.

Essar Steel India Ltd faced financial difficulties and was placed on the defaulter’s list by the Reserve Bank of India in 2017. ArcelorMittal won approval from the Supreme Court to take over Essar Steel and pay the creditors with equal rights in November 2019.

Essar Oil was acquired by a consortium led by Rosneft, Trafigura, and UCP Investment Group for $12.9 billion and rebranded as Nayara Energy.

Ruia is on several important national bodies and industry associations. He was on the managing committee of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), an apex body of India’s trade and business associations. He has also been the Chairman of the prestigious Indo-US Joint Business Council and is a former president of the Indian National Shipowners Association (lNSA). Ruia was a member of the PM’s Indo-US CEO’s Forum and India – Japan Business Council

In 2007, Ruia joined an elite list of achievers, which includes the likes of Richard Branson, Peter Gabriel, Ray Chambers, Pam Omidyar, Amy Robbins and Richard Tarlow, who independently fund The Elders to tackle the world’s most difficult problems.