The Global Association for Contact Center Best Practices & Networking

Mumbai, India (May 30, 2010) – Essar Group, a multinational conglomerate and a player in the sectors of Steel, Oil & Gas, Power, Communications, Shipping Ports & Logistics, Construction and Minerals, and Avaya, a global provider of enterprise communications systems, software and services, today said that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which the Essar Group would acquire Avaya’s entire 59.13% stake in BSE/NSE listed AGC Networks for USD equivalent of Rs 206.19 crore, or Rs 245 a share, subject to customary Indian regulatory requirements and completion of the open offer.

The acquisition would be done through Essar Services Holdings Limited (ESHL). Essar Capital Finance Private Limited (ECF) along with ESHL, Person in Acting in Concert with ECF, would come out with the mandatory open offer for an additional 20% stake at a price determined as per the formula specified in the SEBI Takeover Regulation. ECF will make a mandatory public announcement on Monday, May 31^st, 2010. Assuming all shares are tendered in the open offer, the total size of the open offer will be approx Rs 78 crores.

AGC Networks, earlier known as Avaya GlobalConnect Ltd., is a converged communication solution provider focused on the India and Australia market. The company employs approx 500 people. The current management is expected to continue and spearhead the business post-closing.

Edelweiss Capital Limited is the sole advisor to the transaction and is the manager to the open offer.

Speaking on the occasion, Aparup Sengupta, Managing Director, and Global CEO, Aegis Ltd., said, "Essar in a short span has become a key player in the SI space and would benefit immensely from the depth and width of expertise AGC Networks has. We have a definitive plan to grow this business as we aim for bigger chunks of customer spends."

S K Jha, President, SI Business, Essar, said, "AGC Networks is a leading player in the contact centre, unified communications, and networking space as a solutions integrator with a roster of marquee clients and cutting edge products. It provides a great synergy with our systems integration business. With this acquisition, Essar will gain deep expertise in the ‘enable’ block of experience management that Essar embarked upon through its worldwide expansion drive. Now customers will have the ability to have unified communication and experience management under one roof. We look forward to the successful completion of the transaction and welcome the AGC Networks staff, partners and customers and look forward to a very rewarding relationship with them."

About Avaya:
Avaya Inc. designs, builds and manages communications networks for businesses. Focused on businesses large to small, Avaya provides an Internet Protocol (IP) telephony system of communications software applications and services. Driving the convergence of voice and data communications with business applications - Avaya helps customers leverage existing and new networks to achieve superior business results.

About Aegis bpo services limited:
As a provider in customer care and acquisition for over three decades, Aegis has a track record of introducing process and technology innovations. Today, several Fortune 500 clients trust Aegis to manage their customer interaction, back office and other routine business processes. Aegis’s culture is unique in terms of recognizing its employees as the foundation of its success. We invest in our people because we recognize their importance in our partnerships with clients. In the virtual business environment, there is no difference between your team and ours; more importantly, there is no difference between your customer and ours.