Vedanta Aims To Raise $8 Billion For Bharat Petroleum Bid: Report

As the government is set to sell its entire 52.98% stake in India's second largest fuel retailer Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), mining-to-oil conglomerate Vedanta, private equity firms Apollo Global and I Squared Capital's arm Think Gas have submitted bids for the same.

It is further learnt that Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Group now plans to raise as much as $8 billion through a mix of debt and equity to secure funds for the acquisition of BPCL, as reported by Mint on Wednesday.

Taking it further, Vedanta Resources Plc has already started talks with banks. Discussions with JP Morgan are at an advanced stage, the business daily reported, quoting sources.

Shares of Vedanta Ltd on Wednesday were up by about 3% at 149.75 on the Bombay Stock Exchange at around 11.45 am.

The government is selling its entire 52.98% stake in India's second-largest fuel retailer as part of its plans to raise a record Rs 2.1 lakh crore from disinvestment proceeds in 2020-21 (April 2020 to March 2021).

Tuhin Kanta Pandey, secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), which is handling the strategic sale, had tweeted on November 16 that the transaction advisors for the sale of government's 52.98% stake in BPCL have reported receiving "multiple expressions of interest."

A high-powered committee was to evaluate preliminary bids received for the government's 52.98 percent stake in BPCL on December 15. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the parent ministry of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), has also been asked to give its views on the response and the process so far.

Experts believe that BPCL is being sold at a time when the world is moving away from conventional fuel. Many countries have now set targets to adopt electric mobility in the years to come.

While I Squared Capital is a private equity firm focusing on global infrastructure investments, New York-based Apollo Global Management, Inc is a global alternative investment manager firm.

"Strategic disinvestment of BPCL progresses: Now moves to the second stage after multiple expressions of interest have been received," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had also tweeted.

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).

Shares of BPCL on Wednesday were marginally up by 0.85% at 399.90 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.