HPCL wants ONGC to cut stake in MRPL -Governance Now

HPCL wants ONGC to cut stake in MRPL

HPCL is one of the original owners of MRPL along with the Aditya Birla group, both owning 37.4 percent each in the refiner.

GN Bureau | September 12, 2016

#HPCL #ONGC #Aditya Birla group #MRPL #shareholding norms

State-run Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd (HPCL) wants Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd (ONGC) to divest a part of its stake in the Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) so that it can meet minimum public shareholding norms.

At the end of June, HPCL held a 16.95 percent stake in MRPL, and ONGC, the other promoter, owned 71.6 percent. The public shareholding in MRPL was 11.42 percent, less than 25 percent which is prescribed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), according to a news report published in Live Mint.

At MRPL’s annual general meeting held early this month, the company said it authorised its board “for exercising any of the options available” to meet SEBI’s public shareholding norms.

The options available include divestment of the promoters’ shareholding through an offer for sale or issue of fresh shares by MRPL through a public offer. But HPCL prefers that ONGC sell a part of its stake rather than having its own stake diluted.

HPCL is one of the original owners of MRPL along with the Aditya Birla group, both owning 37.4 percent each in the refiner. In 2003, ONGC bought out the latter’s stake in the loss-making company, the news report added.

Through successive rounds of restructuring and infusion of fresh capital, ONGC gradually increased its holding to 71.6 percent.

Comments

Other News

Careless whispers and the impossible trinity

Time can never mend, the careless whispers of … As the RBI marches ahead, for the upcoming monetary policy meeting this June, whispers from the corridors echo around several policy options to defend the rupee – by deploying forex reserves, raising in

Bullet Train Project: Third mountain tunnel breakthrough achieved

A major engineering milestone has been achieved in the Mumbai–Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project with the successful breakthrough of the third mountain tunnel (MT-07) at Ambesari village in Dahanu Taluka of Palghar district, Maharashtra. With this achievement, three mountain

Supreme Court gets five new judges

Five new judges were appointed to the Supreme Court of India on Monday. "Vide Notifications of even number dated 01.06.2026, in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (2) of Article 124 of the Constitution of India, the Hon’ble President of India is pleased to appoint (i) Shri

Astonishing breadth and depth of ancient Indian knowledge systems

The Greatest Books of Ancient India: Incredible Ideas about Science, Music, Maths, Art and More By Dr. Pradeep Chakravarthy and Dr. R. Thiagarajan Hachette India, 208 pages, Rs 399

Strong El Nino threat over India`s monsoon, food & water security

India is heading into the southwest monsoon season this year under the shadow of a rapidly strengthening El Nino, with meteorologists warning that the climate phenomenon could significantly disrupt rainfall patterns, intensify heat stress and place additional pressure on the country’s agriculture-d

How corporates can nudge real change

The Business Of Business Is (Not) Just Business: How Behavioural Tools Can Drive Real Change Edited by Sutapa Banerjee, with Foreword by Nadir Godrej HarperCollins, 336 pages, Rs 699