Pernod Ricard is said to start the IPO process for the India unit

Pernod Ricard SA, the maker of Absolut vodka and Chivas Regal whiskey, has begun work on a possible initial public offering of its Indian business, according to people familiar with the matter.

Pernod Ricard India Pvt. Ltd. has started preliminary preparations and is Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Also working with legal firm Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, the people asked not to be identified because the information is private. The French distiller will select consultants and begin the formal process soon, they added.

Discussions are ongoing, and details of the offer, including timing, may change, the people said.

A Pernod Ricard representative said that, at this stage, no decision has been made on any specific course of action or whether to include any of these options. Goldman Sachs representatives declined to comment, while Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas did not respond to requests for comment.

If the listing is completed, Hyundai Motor India Ltd., LG Electronics India Ltd., Tenneco Clean Air Ltd. and Carraro India Ltd. Pernod Ricard will join the growing list of multinationals tapping the Indian equity market in recent years, including Indian IPOs have raised about $2.9 billion so far this year, compared to data of about $2.2 billion against a total of $220,000. via Bloomberg.

India is Pernod Ricard’s largest market by volume and second largest by value, Jean Touboul, the unit’s chief executive, told The Times of India in December.

Pernod Ricard owns brands including Royal Stag, Blender’s Pride, 100 Pipers, Chivas Regal, Ballantines, The Glenlivet, Royal Salute and Jameson Irish Whiskey. It employs more than 1,500 people in India and operates 24 production sites, according to its website.

Last year, Pernod Ricard India sold its Imperial Blue business division to Tilaknagar Industries Ltd for an enterprise value of 41.5 billion rupees ($446 million).