Finmin lines up 16 PSUs for divestment

Finance Ministry has drawn up a list of 16 PSUs, including Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Oil India and Coal India for disinvestment in 2016-17 which could fetch the exchequer Rs 40,000 crore (Rs 400 billion) at current stock value.

The list includes state-owned companies such as NMDC, MOIL, MMTC, National Fertilisers, NHPC, NALCO and Bharat Electronics, sources said.

Based on the current market prices, the stake sales could fetch the exchequer around Rs 40,000 crore.

The list mostly contains PSUs which were up for sale in the last fiscal itself but volatile market conditions delayed the plan.

Besides, the Cabinet approvals are also in place for some of these PSUs.

"We have cabinet approval for stake sales.

“In PSUs which have excess cash, buy back is also an option for which we do

not need a new approval," a source said.

At the current market price, 10 per cent stake sale in Coal India, NMDC and Nalco could fetch around Rs 18,000 crore (Rs 180 billion), Rs 3,800 crore (Rs 38 billion) and Rs 1,000 crore (Rs 10 billion) respectively.

Besides, 5 per cent stake sale in ONGC, BHEL and Bharat Electronics could raise about Rs 9,000 crore, Rs 1,300 crore (Rs 13 billion) and Rs 1,400 crore (Rs 14 billion).

A 10 per cent stake sale in NHPC and MOIL could fetch about Rs 3,000 crore (Rs 30 billion) and Rs 365 crore (Rs 3.65 billion).

Further, a 15 per cent stake sale in MMTC, National Fertiliser and STC could raise about Rs 560 crore (Rs 5.6 billion), Rs 200 crore (Rs 2 billion) and Rs 80 crore (Rs 800 billion) respectively.

Besides, the government is also considering a 5 per cent stake sale in Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizers Ltd, 12.03 per cent in ITDC and a follow on public offer of NBCC.

The Budget has set a disinvestment target of Rs 56,500 crore (Rs 565 billion) for current fiscal.

Of this, Rs 36,000 crore (Rs 360 billion) is estimated to come from minority stake sale in PSUs, and the remaining Rs 20,500 crore (Rs 205 billion) is projected to come from strategic sale in both profit and loss-making companies.