The two businesses recorded a combined revenue of approximately ₹2,140 crore in FY 2025-26, according to the companies.

Completion of the transaction is subject to, among other conditions, prior approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

Associated Road Carriers

Founded in 1972, ARC operates a pan-India B2B road transportation network comprising more than 20 hubs and approximately 600 branches across over 16,000 pin codes.

The company has approximately 2 million square feet of covered hub space and deploys around 3,500 trucks daily through an asset-light model, with less than 7% of its fleet being owned, according to the company.

ARC provides transportation services across project cargo, full truckload (FTL) and part truckload (PTL) segments. Its customers operate across sectors including capital goods, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, power and electrical equipment, metals, automotive, textiles and FMCG.

The company said that approximately 95% of its revenue is generated from existing customers, with nearly half of its revenue coming from customer relationships that have continued for more than ten years.

Calyx Container Terminals

Founded in 2006, Calyx operates a Container Freight Station (CFS) located approximately 20 kilometres from the Chennai port, with an annual capacity of around 75,000 TEUs.

It also provides supply chain management and empty container yard services to shipping lines and clearing agents.

The proposed combination of ARC and Calyx is expected to bring together ARC's domestic road transportation network and Calyx's port-linked EXIM logistics infrastructure.

Investment and expansion plans

According to the companies, the investment from Samara Capital will support expansion of the branch and hub network, strengthening of first-mile and last-mile capabilities, technology modernisation, data analytics, process improvements and selective acquisitions.

The transaction also involves greater institutionalisation of ARC, with ownership and management being increasingly separated and professional management taking a greater role in the company's operations.

Rajiv Goyal, representing the Promoter Group, said that the transition was intended to institutionalise the business, strengthen governance and separate ownership from management.

He added that the promoters would continue to remain available to provide guidance and support during the transition to professional management.

Abhishek Kabra, Managing Director at Samara Capital, said that the firm would work with the management teams of ARC and Calyx in their next phase of growth.

Abhik Mitra, Operating Partner at Samara Capital, said that the focus would be on investments in people, technology, network expansion, data analytics and process improvements.

Advisors

Manish Sukhani of 28MAEI said that completion of the transaction is subject to, among other things, prior approval from the Competition Commission of India.

PwC India advised Samara Capital on financial and tax due diligence, while Trilegal acted as its legal counsel.

28MAEI, EY, J Sagar Associates (JSA) and Solicis Lex advised the Promoter Group.

Ameet Mehta, Managing Partner at Solicis Lex, and Senior Partner Swetha Poojary were involved in advising the Promoter Group on the transaction.

About the companies

Associated Road Carriers was founded in 1972 and provides B2B road transportation services across India, including project cargo, FTL and PTL services.

Calyx Container Terminals was founded in 2006 and operates a Container Freight Station near the Chennai port, besides providing supply chain management and empty container yard services.

Samara Capital, founded in 2007, is an Indian mid-market private equity firm. According to the firm, it has invested more than ₹12,000 crore across over 30 companies and focuses on sectors including consumer and retail, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, financial services, and business services and technology.