FM against immediate sale of Maruti stake

Government's exit from Maruti Udyog Ltd may not happen for some time, with the finance minister asking the heavy industries ministry to 'wait for an opportune time' to offload its residual stake in the company.

The suggestion came during a meeting Heavy Industries Minister Santosh Mohan Deb had with Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Tuesday.

The finance minister was in favour of waiting for some time before deciding to offload the remaining 10.27 per cent stake the government has in Maruti, Deb said.

"The finance minister said that this was not an opportune time to sell the stake," he said.

He said the finance ministry was in favour of 'getting the maximum out of it (stake sale).'

Opposition to any immediate sale comes days after Deb had said the government has initiated the process of selling all its holding in Maruti to raise more than Rs 2,500 crore (Rs 25 billion).

"We have offered to the Finance Ministry to sell 10.27 per cent stake that the government has in Maruti. Now it is up to them to take the call," Deb had said on Monday.

Sources said the finance ministry wants the stock markets to stabilise before taking any final call on the matter. The government stake in the company is held by the ministry of heavy industries.

Based on the current market price of the company's scrip on the stock exchanges, the government is likely to raise around Rs 2,500 crore (Rs 25 billion) if it decides to sell now. 

As all disinvestment in public sector companies has been called off for now, sale of shares in erstwhile PSU Maruti could offer the much-needed resources to the government.

Last year, the government had sold 8 per cent shares in Maruti for more than Rs 1,567 crore to public sector financial institutions. At that time itself, government had announced that it would completely exit the company in 2006.

The government's holding in the company has come down to 10.27 per cent and it no longer has a director on the board of the Maruti.

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