After three days of uncertainity, the West Bengal Government has announced its decision to accept the bid submitted by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) for buying 39.9% of Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd. equity held by a government agency. The equity of the block is held by West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation, the state’s apex industry promotion agency. IOC holds over 8% stake in HPL, besides having feedstock supply tie-ups with HPL from its Haldia refinery. HPL’s other major shareholder, Purnendu Chatterjee-led The Chatterjee Group (TCG), would be offered the right of first refusal (RoFR). TCG will have a month to respond. It is learnt that the price offered by IOC is higher than the reserve price fixed by the government, and the Group of Ministers (GoM) on HPL, set up by Chief Ministe has decided to accept the IOC bid for WBIDC’s stake in the petrochemicals firm. Mr. Chatterjee declined to reveal the reserve price.
11-Oct-13 
