About a month ago, he had returned from the United States, where he was receiving therapy.
Shashikant Ruia, an industrialist and the chairman of the Essar Group, died on Monday following a protracted illness. He was eighty-one.
Together with his brother Ravi, Ruia co-founded the metals-to-technology conglomerate Essar.
In a statement released Tuesday, the Essar company said, “We are deeply saddened by the loss of Shashikant Ruia, Patriarch of the Ruia and Essar Family.”
He made a lasting impression on millions of lives with his unflinching dedication to philanthropy and community upliftment. He was a genuinely remarkable leader because of his kindness, humility, and capacity to relate to everyone he encountered, the statement continued.
According to the statement, the chairman of the Essar group, Shashikant Ruia, is a legendary businessman who helped redefine the corporate landscape of India, established the Essar group, and turned it into a multinational conglomerate.
“Shashikant Ruia ji was a titan in the business world. His innovative leadership and relentless dedication to excellence revolutionized India’s corporate environment. He also established high standards for development and innovation. He was constantly talking about ways to improve our nation and was always full of ideas. In his sympathy message on X, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his heartfelt sadness on Shashi Ji’s passing.
Under the direction of his late father, Nand Kishore Ruia, Ruia started working at the family business in 1965. Shashi Ruia founded Essar and led its expansion, diversification, and commercial strategy alongside his brother Ravi.
When Shashi Ruia secured a significant contract worth Rs 2.3 crore to build an outside breakwater for Chennai Port in 1969, the Essar adventure officially began. With the establishment of a 515 MW cycle power plant at Hazira in 1991, Essar became the first Independent Power Producer in India.
The companies the brothers co-founded are now owned by Essar Global Fund Limited (EGFL), a global investor with a variety of top-tier assets spread throughout the main industries of energy, metals & mining, infrastructure, technology, and services. The combined revenue of the companies in the Fund’s portfolio is $14 billion USD. According to the Essar website, these businesses manage more than 50 assets located all over the world while abiding by international standards for corporate governance, environmental protection, health, and safety.
Global giants including Vodafone, Rosneft, Trafigura, and Brookfield have contributed over US $40 billion in monetization profits to Essar’s portfolio companies in the telecom, BPO, and oil and gas industries, the company said.
Essar gained a first-mover advantage in numerous industries thanks to Shashi Ruia’s vision. Essar was one of the first businesses to provide mobile phone services when the Indian telecom industry was opened to private involvement, the statement said. He also established a shipping firm, an oil refinery, and a steel complex.
But a few years ago, two of Essar’s major businesses that the Ruia brothers founded were sold off.
In 2017, Essar Steel India Ltd. experienced financial difficulties and was added to the Reserve Bank of India’s list of defaulters. In November 2019, the Supreme Court granted ArcelorMittal permission to acquire Essar Steel and provide equal rights to its creditors.
For $12.9 billion, a group led by Rosneft, Trafigura, and UCP Investment Group purchased Essar Oil, which was then renamed Nayara Energy.
Ruia is a member of numerous significant industry groups and national bodies. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the highest authority of India’s trade and industry associations, had him on its governing committee. A former president of the Indian National Shipowners Association (lNSA), he has also served as Chairman of the esteemed Indo-US Joint Business Council. Ruia belonged to the India-Japan Business Council and the PM’s Indo-US CEO’s Forum.
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.
