India-based GMR Group has entered into an agreement with its joint venture (JV) partners to divest a 51% stake in GMR OSE Hungund Hospet Highways Private Limited (GOHHHPL).

The group comprises GMR Infrastructure and GMR Highways.

GOHHHPL is responsible for operating a 99km road project, which is the Hungund Hospet section of National Highway 13 in Karnataka, India.

In 2010, the contract for the project work was secured by a consortium comprising the GMR Group and Oriental Structural Engineers (OSE).

"We, at GMR Group, continue to focus on creating liquidity and reducing our leveraged position, as part of the strategy of churning of assets."

The consortium carried out the project work on design, build, finance, operate and transfer basis.

The sale will be carried out in two phases. Under the first phase, the JV partners will purchase a 14.99% stake of the project from the GMR Group, while the second phase of the sale will be completed after receiving approvals for the transactions from National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and lenders of GOHHHPL.

GMR Group corporate chairman Grandhi Kiran Kumar said: "This transaction once again signifies about the GMR Group’s commitment and ability to successfully implement its ‘asset-light-asset-right’ strategy under challenging market conditions.

"We, at GMR Group, continue to focus on creating liquidity and reducing our leveraged position, as part of the strategy of churning of assets."

The overall sale consideration is approximately Rs850m ($12.7m), nearly 1.1 times of the book value investment.

The deal will enable the GMR Group to clear a debt of Rs10.7bn ($161.6m).

This is the third main divestment of the GMR Group in road projects.