The government extended the deadline for the submission of initial bids for Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) on Wednesday by one and a half months.
Shares of BPCL were trading at Rs 360.90 on BSE, down by 6.55 percent from their previous close, thus the Centre has again extended the deadline for submission of Expressions of Interest (EoI) for the strategic sale of Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) to November 16, as the pandemic has impacted the government’s mega disinvestment plans.
“In view of further requests received from the interested bidders (IBs) and the prevailing situation arising out of COVID-19 pandemic, the last date for submission of expressions of interest (EoIs) is further extended to November 16, 2020 (by 5.00 pm),” an official order said.
The government has barred PSUs from bidding for BPCL and expects private sector Indian players and global MNCs to bid for its stake. The disinvestment in BPCL involves the government selling its entire 52.98 percent stake in the company to a strategic investor with the transfer of management control. The government’s stake in BPCL is worth Rs 50,000 crore(Approx).
Shares of the state-run oil major plunged on Wednesday after the extension of the deadline. At 11.24 IST, its shares on the BSE were trading at Rs 362.25, lower by Rs 23.95 or 6.20 percent from its previous close.
