Aditya Birla Group to Acquire Minacs Worldwide

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India , 2006-06-26


--Acquisition By TransWorks - an Aditya Birla Nuvo Subsidiary -Unites Leading Canadian and Indian BPO Companies

-- Cost of acquisition to be approximately US$125 million

The Aditya Birla Group today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement with Minacs Worldwide Inc., Canada’s leading BPO provider, to offer CDN$5.50 per share in cash for all outstanding common shares of Minacs on a fully-diluted basis. The open offer for acquisition will be made through TransWorks, a leading Indian BPO provider and a wholly owned subsidiary of Aditya Birla Nuvo Limited. The total expected cost of the acquisition will be approximately US$125 million including payment for all common shares, and in-the-money option and warrant securities of the company. The combined business will have a revenue base of approximately US$300M.

Says Mr. Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of Aditya Birla Group, “The acquisition demonstrates our commitment to emerge as a leading global BPO services provider and expand our global footprint. The integrated expertise of both companies will create and provide more powerful and compelling BPO solutions to clients. The result will be a firm with distinctive industry knowledge and execution capability delivered through a unique ‘same-shore, near-shore, offshore’ global delivery platform. The objective will be to reliably deliver outstanding BPO services to global clients from anywhere in the world.”

Mr. Norman Betts, Chair of the Board of Directors of Minacs, said: “I am very pleased that we have been able to find a great new partner in TransWorks, for our customers and for our shareholders. I am proud of this agreement and the future it secures.”

Avers Mr. Sanjeev Aga, Managing Director of Aditya Birla Nuvo, stated: “This transaction brings together two premium providers of BPO services. Together they will create a world class BPO leader in both the onshore and offshore sectors. Importantly, even as the transaction offers many longer-term opportunities to deliver enhanced services to existing and new clients - the top priority in the near-term will be to ensure consistent and reliable services to existing clients.”

ReichmannHauer Capital Partners, a Toronto based private investment firm, partnered with the Aditya Birla Group in evaluating the transaction and intends to invest in the combined entity. “The combination of Transworks and Minacs creates a BPO provider well positioned for industry leadership. The resulting firm will have an outstanding global delivery footprint, superior solutions offerings, and strong brands and customer relationships,” said Philip Reichmann, co-founding partner of RHCP.

The deal is expected to be completed by the end of August, subject to necessary approvals and other conditions.

This is the Aditya Birla Group’s third venture in Canada. The Group operates two companies in Canada, the Atholville Pulp Mill and the Nackawic Pulp Mill in the Province of New Brunswick. In India, the Group has a JV in financial services with Sun Life of Canada and a JV in aluminium business with Alcan.

About Minacs

Minacs provides customized business process outsourcing (BPO) solutions focused on three core areas: contact center solutions, integrated marketing services, and back office administration. We combine our expertise to improve revenue, customer service, and operating margin for our clients. With approximately 6,000 employees from locations in Canada, the US and Europe, Minacs has established successful practices with clients in the automotive, financial services, telecom, technology, and government sectors. For more information, please visit: minacs.com.

About TransWorks

Founded in 1999, TransWorks is one of India’s leading business process outsourcing companies. A wholly owned subsidiary of the Aditya Birla Nuvo (part of the Aditya Birla Group - one of India’s largest and most respected business group), TransWorks currently employs over 4,200 employees across facilities in India and Canada, and blends specialised knowledge and expertise to deliver superior outsourced solutions to Global 1000 financial services, technology, retail and e-services companies.

TransWorks adheres to the highest standards of quality, data security and confidentiality of client information and is certified to the COPC-2000 (Release 3.4), ISO 9001:2000 and BS7799 Standards.

For more information, visit www.transworks.com.

Contact

Dr Pragnya Ram, Aditya Birla Group, +91(022) 6652 5160 / +91(022) 6652 5000
[email protected]