Financial bids for HCL called, SC decision may impact process

NEW DELHI: The government has invited financial bids for the privatisation of Hindustan Copper even as uncertainty clouded the disinvestment of the copper major, acquired partly through nationalisation route.
Bidders have been given a month''s time to submit the financial bids, sources associated with the deal said.
Suitors for the copper major would be required to submit an earnest money deposit of Rs 5 crore.
However, the fate of the bidding process for the disinvestment seemed unclear as the company''s Ghatshila complex located in Jharkand mining belt was acquired through the Parliamentary route.
The Indian Copper Complex at Ghatshila on the Bengal-Bihar border houses three copper mines and a smelter. The company has already decided to shut down the mines leaving the smelter to function.
Sources said the players vying for stake in the company had been made aware of the facts relating to acquisition and Disinvestment Ministry had not called off the bids in view of the Supreme Court decision on oil PSUs.
The Supreme Court had yesterday disallowed the government from proceeding with sale of equity in oil PSUs HPCL and BPCL arguing legislative approval was needed as the two companies were acquired through an enactment.
The government proposes to sell its entire 98 per cent equity in the copper company to a strategic partner along with management control.