With disinvestment on hold, the power ministry now seeks approval for initial public offers of Power Finance Corporation, National Hydroelectric Power Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation and Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd in this fiscal without offloading any government stake in the companies.
PFC, which had earlier received Cabinet nod for an IPO of 10 per cent along with five per cent sale of government equity, is now likely to go for only fresh equity, official sources told PTI.
Sources said the power ministry has written to Cabinet Secretary B K Chaturvedi, asking permission for PFC to go ahead with its initial public offer of 10 per cent.
PFC had in June this year filed a draft prospectus with market regulator SEBI for the proposed IPO, but the issue was delayed after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh put on hold all disinvestment decisions.
Sources said besides PFC, the ministry is targeting to issue fresh equity of up to 24 per cent in NHPC, REC and PowerGrid.
A Cabinet note for the IPOs of these PSUs is yet to be moved, sources said, adding even if Cabinet approval is granted for issuing 24 per cent equity, the companies would initially go for only 10 per cent.
The public offers of NHPC, REC, PGCIL as also North-Eastern Electric Power Corporation are targeted within this financial year.
However, Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde refused to give any timeframe for IPOs of these companies.
"The IPOs are in the process... it will take time. I cannot say if it will happen in this fiscal," Shinde said on the sidelines of a conference in New Delhi.
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