Department of investment and public asset management (DIPAM) Secretary tweeted that the government has received a final dividend of Rs 6,665 crore from Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited in the fiscal year 2020-21. This is inclusive of special dividends acquired from the sale of its stake in Nulaigarh Refinery in March, this year.
The state-run refiner had sold its entire stake in Numaligarh Refinery in Assam For Rs 9,876 crore to a consortium of Oil India Ltd, Engineers India and the Assam government.
The central government is trying to sell its entire 52.98 per cent stake in the state-run refiner. However, the proposal has not seen sizeable euphoria as globally there is a visible push towards green energy, and commitment to slash emissions and CFCs is demotivating companies from making further investments in fossil fuels.
Additionally, the pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns bought in uncertain dynamics that have discouraged global firms from making sizeable investments in fossil fuels.
However, Vedanta Group and private equity firms such as Apollo Global and I Squared Capital's Indian subsidiary Think Gas have put forth their willingness for buying the state-run operator. As per an Economic Times report, the bidders are talking to global energy giants and sovereign and pension funds, however, they have not been able to finalize partners. The report states that bidders are finding it difficult to invest owing to cumbersome sustainability rules.
The Finance Ministry had stated that it expected to complete the privatisation process of the refiner in the current fiscal year.
