Nalco stake sale on Friday, may fetch govt Rs 1,100 cr

Government will sell up to 10 per cent stake in state-run aluminium major Nalco on March 15 which may fetch the exchequer around Rs 1,100 crore.

Nalco on Wednesday said the government would offload more than 12.89 crore shares, amounting to about five per cent stake in the company.

There would also be an "option to sell an additional 12,88,61,925 equity shares of the face value of Rs 5 each of the company... collectively aggregating to approximately 10 per cent of the total paid up equity share capital of the company," the company said in a filing to the BSE.

The sale through the auction route would be held on March 15 from 9:15 am to 3:30 pm, it added.

At current market price, the sale could fetch over Rs 1,180 crore.

Earlier in the day, the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on disinvestment, headed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram decided on the base price for the share sale.

Shares of Nalco closed at Rs 46.30, up 2.32 per cent over previous close on the BSE.

The Department of Disinvestment (DoD) has held roadshows in Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, the US and the UK on February 19 for disinvestment of the state-run aluminium company.

The government currently holds 87.15 per cent stake in Nalco.

Nalco posted a more than two-fold jump in its October-December quarter net profit to Rs 118.94 crore, on the back of improved sales. The company had a profit of Rs 51.22 crore in the same period last fiscal.

Enam Securities, SBI Caps and IDFC are merchant bankers for the Nalco disinvestment.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) had in September approved disinvestment in the Navratna PSU.

The government estimates to collect Rs 24,000 crore from disinvestment in the current fiscal and has already raised Rs 21,500 crore.