BPCL disinvestment likely to be completed by March 2022: Chairman
In April this year, BPCL allowed access to its financial data for bidders to assess the valuation before sending their bids
Speaking at a press conference after the annual general body of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), chairman Arun Kumar Singh said that the government is intending to complete the disinvestment of BPCL by March next year. This comes on the back of the Fitch ratings in the first week of September 2021, which noted that there may be delays in BPCL’s privatisation owing to the uncertainty over bidder consortiums and complexity in processes including valuation.
Vedanta, I Squared Capital and Apollo Global have sold out its controlling stake in BPCL in response to the government’s call. The Centre has 52.98% of share holding in the Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) crude oil refiner and the prospective buyer may have to further shell out another Rs 50,000 crore for controlling the stake at present valuation.
In April this year, BPCL allowed access to its financial data for bidders to assess the valuation before sending their bids.
Last month, Tuhin Kant Pandey, Secretary of Department of Investement and Public Asset Management said that the government is planning to complete privatisation of BPCL and Air India this year.
No clarity on BPCL’s stake in IGL and Petronet
With the privatisation right around the corner, BPCL’s stake in Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) and Pertonet LNG is another important aspect which required clarity.
On this subject, Singh responded that they have written to Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) seeking waiver for the open offer and are yet to hear from them. Based on the response from Sebi, DIPAM, Ministry of Petroleum and all other government bodies, they will take a decision on what to do, he said. He also added that it is to early to comment on these issues.