Shares in Mercantile Ports and Logistics Ltd (LON: MPL) fell 15% to 1.30p after a key court hearing in India linked to the company’s fight over its Karanja port asset was adjourned.
The AIM-listed company said a hearing before the National Company Law Tribunal in Mumbai was adjourned on Wednesday, with no substantive order passed.
The matter has now been listed for further hearing on August 7, 2026.
Mercantile owns and has developed the Karanja port and logistics facility near Navi Mumbai through its subsidiary Karanja Terminal & Logistics.
The company is challenging the corporate insolvency resolution process affecting Karanja Terminal, which it says threatens its ability to recover value from the asset it spent years developing.
In previous updates, Mercantile has said it considers the process around the approval of the resolution plan to be fundamentally flawed and has vowed to pursue all available legal remedies.
The dispute follows the rejection by creditors of Mercantile’s proposal to repay outstanding dues. Creditors instead approved a rival resolution plan from Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone.
If confirmed by the tribunal, that plan could see ownership of the terminal transfer to Adani Ports, strengthening its presence on India’s western coast.
Mercantile maintains that Karanja remains a revenue-generating asset and has argued that it has not been operationally insolvent.
Managing director Pavan Bakhshi said the company remained fully committed to fighting for the return of its asset and would continue to pursue every legal avenue available to protect shareholders’ interests.
The latest delay adds further uncertainty for investors as Mercantile awaits a substantive ruling from the tribunal.
