New Delhi: The Inter Ministerial Group has approved the sale bid document for the privatization of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), the country’s second largest oil refinery company.
After the approval of the Group of Ministers, notice will be issued for inviting bids. The Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) consists of representatives from the Ministry of Finance, Petroleum, Law, Corporate Affairs and the Department of Disinvestment.
The group has approved letter of interest and preliminary information memorandum (PIM) for the company.
According to sources connected with the case, it will now be placed before the alternative arrangement made for approval. This arrangement is a small group of prominent cabinet ministers.
After approval, a letter of interest will be issued to invite bids from potential buyers. PIM with EOI can be put on the market this month. The government plans to sell its entire 53.29 per cent stake in BPCL.
This will give buyers access to the country’s 14 percent oil refining capacity and 20 percent fuel market share.
Sources said that the two-tier process will be followed for bidding. Under this, the Request for Proposal (RFP) will be invited in the first phase and after that in the second phase there will be a process of investigation cum bidding by the eligible bidders.
BPCL has a market capitalization of Rs 1.03 lakh crore. The government’s stake at the current price is around Rs 54,000 crore.
The successful bidder will have to make an open offer to other shareholders for the acquisition of a 26 percent stake at the same price.
