BPCL climbs 3% as Vedanta, foreign players in race to buy govt stake

NEW DELHI: Shares of BPCL climbed 3 per cent in Thursday's trade amid reports that Vedanta has put in a preliminary expression of interest (EoI) for buying the government's stake in the OMC, for which a major foreign player too is said to be in the race.

The stock rose 2.69 per cent to hit a high of Rs 393.50 on BSE.

A special purpose vehicle floated by Vedanta and its London-based parent Vedanta Resources submitted an EoI before the close of deadline on November 16, PTI reported.


"Vedanta's EoI for BPCL is to evaluate potential synergies with our existing oil and gas business," the company said in a statement. "The EoI is at a preliminary stage and exploratory in nature."

Sources said that a major foreign player was among the three-four entities whose EoIs were received by the close of the bidding on November 16. The other potential investors are foreign funds but their identity was not
immediately disclosed.

The government is selling its entire 52.98 per cent stake in India's second largest fuel retailer as part of plans to raise a record Rs 2.1 lakh crore from disinvestment proceeds in 2020-21 (April 2020 to March 2021). The share price of BPCL has plunged by nearly a fourth since the time the strategic sale was approved in November last year.