Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) has entered into a conditional share sale agreement with GMR Airports for the disposal of its 10% equity interest in Delhi International Airport Pvt Ltd (DIAL).

DIAL is a special purpose vehicle established to carry out development, operation and management of the Delhi Airport.

The transaction will increase the GMR Airports' stake in DIAL to 64% from its currently 54 %. Specifically, the company will acquire 245 million shares at a price of  about Rs20 each, which means that the transaction value is Rs4.9 billion (US$79 million). The sale is subject to approval from Airports Authority of India.

In January 2006, a GMR-led consortium was awarded the concession to operate, manage and develop the airport. The 30-year concession can be extended by another 30 years.

MAHB invested about US$40 million between 2006 and 2008 to buy 10% stake in DIAL.

MAHB said in a filing of Bursa Malaysia stock exchange:

"As the existing shareholders' agreement restricts foreign ownership in DIAL to not more than 49 per cent, MAHB is of the opinion that it would not be in a position to exert influence over DIAL unless it is able to own majority shareholding in it."

The airport serves as the primary civilian aviation hub for the National Capital Region of Delhi, India. The airport, spread over an area of 5,106 acres, is situated in Palam, 16 km  from New Delhi city center.

In 2014, the airport was among the top 30 busiest airports in the world with 39.7 million passengers handled, registering a 7.8% growth in traffic over the previous year.