Haldia Petrochem board rejects conversion of loan into equity

05-Feb-13

The management of Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL), led by the West Bengal government, has rejected lenders’ demand for conversion of a part of their Rs.4,000 crore loans to the company into equity. The state expects to conclude the sale of its 40% stake in the firm by 30 June. Partha Chatterjee, the firm’s chairman and the state’s commerce and industries minister said that lenders would have to wait for up to eight months for the conversion, and that lenders will be able to get a better deal on the conversion of shares if they wait till the sale of West Bengal’s stake in HPL.