Five CEOs make presentations before Tata Sons board: Noel Tata takes stock of loss-making bets

Ahead of its June 12 board meeting, Tata Sons reviewed strategic businesses involving multi-billion-dollar investments amid discussions around leadership succession, losses and the group’s long-pending listing plans.

Written by Urvi Malvania

Updated: May 26, 2026 20:51 IST

Ahead of its June 12 board meeting, Tata Sons reviewed strategic businesses involving multi-billion-dollar investments amid discussions around leadership succession, losses and the group’s long-pending listing plans.

In a meeting that stretched for more than five hours at Bombay House on Tuesday, the Tata Sons board undertook an unusually detailed stock-taking exercise of some of the group’s most ambitious — and most closely watched — businesses, amid growing chatter around issues ranging from the future leadership of the conglomerate to the long-pending question of a Tata Sons listing.

The special board meeting, called by Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran ahead of the scheduled June 12 board meeting, saw chief executives from five Tata Group companies present turnaround strategies, capital allocation plans and long-term business roadmaps before the holding company’s directors.

The discussions began around 10:30 am and continued well into the afternoon, reflecting the seriousness with which the board is reviewing businesses that together account for investments running into several lakh crore rupees.

Attendees included Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran, Tata Trusts Vice-Chairman Venu Srinivasan, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer Saurabh Agrawal, and independent directors Anita George and Harish Manwani.

Top executives making presentations included Tata Electronics CEO Randhir Thakur, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson; Tata Digital CEO Sajith Sivanandan; Agratas CEO Thomas Flack; and Tejas Networks Chief Technology Officer Kumar Sivarajan.

Even before formal proceedings began, the significance of the meeting was evident. Chandrasekaran, Noel Tata and Srinivasan arrived at Bombay House around 8:30 am, nearly two hours before the scheduled start, and are believed to have held informal discussions before the board convened formally.

Srinivasan was the first among the directors to leave the iconic South Mumbai headquarters at around 4 pm, followed about 20 minutes later by Chandrasekaran. George and Manwani exited shortly thereafter, while Noel Tata and Agrawal remained at the premises till much later in the evening.

People familiar with the matter said the meeting was convened after concerns were raised by Noel Tata at the previous Tata Sons board meeting regarding the performance trajectory, investment commitments and execution challenges at some of these businesses. The June 12 Tata Sons board meeting, meanwhile, is expected to deliberate on larger strategic issues, including the future of Tata Sons’ listing status and succession-related questions ahead of Chandrasekaran’s term ending in February 2027.

Among the businesses reviewed, Tata Electronics remains central to the group’s semiconductor ambitions, with investments spanning chip fabrication, electronics manufacturing and precision engineering. Its Dholera semiconductor fabrication project in Gujarat alone involves an investment of around Rs 91,000 crore ($11 billion), apart from a separate Rs 27,000-crore semiconductor assembly and testing facility in Assam.

Air India, which has embarked on one of aviation’s largest transformation programmes since its takeover by the Tata Group, also came under close review. The airline has announced orders for 570 aircraft across Airbus and Boeing, alongside major investments in fleet refurbishment, technology systems and network expansion.

Air India’s FY26 losses are estimated at nearly $3 billion, making it the group’s single largest loss-making entity. Wilson, who is preparing to hand over charge to his successor, is said to have outlined a detailed roadmap for the carrier’s eventual turnaround.

Tata Digital, another business that drew significant board attention, has absorbed close to Rs 24,000 crore in investments to build the Tata Neu ecosystem and expand businesses including BigBasket, Croma, Tata 1mg and Tata Cliq. The group infused another Rs 4,000 crore into the business in FY25 despite continuing losses. Apart from concerns around the lack of meaningful returns several years after launch, Tata Digital has also grappled with leadership churn, having seen three chief executives in as many years before former Google executive Sivanandan took charge last September.

Agratas, the group’s global battery manufacturing venture, has attracted investments exceeding Rs 50,000 crore and is building battery gigafactories in India and the UK, including the multi-billion-pound Somerset facility in Britain. While still at an early stage, the business faces questions over slowing global electric vehicle demand and the pace of battery manufacturing adoption in India.

Meanwhile, Tejas Networks — seen as a strategic telecom manufacturing and networking play for the Tata Group — also presented its plans amid operational and financial pressures. The company reported a loss of Rs 909 crore in FY26, compared with a profit of Rs 446.5 crore a year earlier, despite benefiting from opportunities linked to India’s government-backed 4G and 5G rollout programmes.

Highlights:

Special review held ahead of June 12 meet
Biz under scrutiny include Tata Electronics, Air India, Tata Digital, EV battery unit Agratas and Tejas Networks