Cabinet to decide on state-owned firms' plans to bid for HPCL: Naik

Thursday, 12 December 2002, 20:30 IST
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NEW DELHI: State-owned companies keen to bid for a stake in petroleum major Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), earmarked for strategic divestment, would have to get cabinet clearance for it, Petroleum Minister Ram Naik said Wednesday. The interested firms would have to put their request to the administrative ministry for forwarding it to the cabinet committee on disinvestments (CCD), Naik said on the sidelines of a function to inaugurate a gas pipeline that would ensure better supplies of compressed natural gas (CNG) in the capital. "Every company would have to submit to its administrative ministry a proposal giving all relevant information. The ministry will then take a view and forward the case to the CCD," Naik said. "It is ultimately for the CCD to allow or disallow," he said. After over three months of stalemate, the government last week decided to move ahead with the proposal for disinvestments of two oil majors -- HPCL and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL). In the case of HPCL, as per the compromise formula worked out by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on December 5, a strategic sale route would be taken, while a public offering route is planned for BPCL. Naik refused to comment on the nature of public offering. Some state-owned fertiliser majors have evinced interest in acquiring stake in the oil companies. As per a cabinet decision of September, state-owned companies were barred from bidding for another state-owned company. Naik opposed this on the grounds that state-owned companies too should be allowed to strengthen their position to offset strong competition from private majors.
Source: IANS