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<keyword id="484749" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="jaiprakash-power-ventures-ltd" source="Orion">Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd</keyword> acquired Bandha North coal mine in Madhya Pradesh, while <keyword id="14366646" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="avassa-ferro" source="Orion">Avassa Ferro</keyword> Alloys Private Ltd bagged Dahegaon/Makardhokra-IV reserve in <keyword id="13126" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="maharashtra" source="Orion">Maharashtra</keyword> out of the eight blocks which were put up for e-auction by the government for commercial mining on Tuesday. <keyword id="14979041" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="madhya-bharat-minerals-private-ltd" source="Orion">Madhya Bharat Minerals Private Ltd</keyword> got Sursa reserve in Chhattisgarh, while Marki Mangli-IV coal reserve in Maharashtra was pouched by Sobhagya Mercantile Ltd. Jitpur reserve in Jharkhand was acquired by <keyword id="14979040" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="terri-mining-private-ltd" source="Orion">Terri Mining Private Ltd</keyword> while Rampia and Dip side of Rampia in Odisha were won by Jhar Mineral Resource Private Ltd. Basantpur coal block in Jharkhand was bagged by Gangaramchak Mining Private Ltd. Out of these eight blocks, five are full explored while three reserves are partially explored mines. The total geological reserves for these eight coal mines are 2157 million tonnes and the cumulative peak rate capacity for these reserves are 19.31 million tonnes per annum. The Coal Ministry will conduct e-auction of two more reserves on Wednesday. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/thelife/personalities/news/regional-and-folk-singers-are-using-youtube-to-preserve-and-popularise-their-culture/articleshow/94179996.cms">Regional and folk singers are using YouTube to preserve and popularise their culture</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indias-growth-story-more-promising-than-other-ems-says-market-veteran-nilesh-shah/articleshow/94182972.cms">India’s growth story more promising than other EMs, says market veteran Nilesh Shah</a>

Jaiprakash Power Ventures, Avassa Ferro Alloys among successful bidders for commercial coal blocks

State-owned <keyword id="20039085" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Coal-India-Ltd" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Coal India Ltd" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Coal India Ltd">Coal India Ltd</keyword>'s contribution to the <keyword id="21546749" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="government-exchequer" source="keywords">government exchequer</keyword> increased by 6.4 per cent to Rs 60,140.31 crore in <keyword id="19910780" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="FY24" source="keywords">FY24</keyword>, over the financial year 2022-23. <keyword id="19903245" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Coal-India" source="keywords">Coal India</keyword> Ltd (CIL), which accounts for over 80 per cent of domestic coal output, paid Rs 56,524.11 crore to the government exchequer in FY23, according to provisional figures of the coal ministry. Total levies paid to the government in March 2024 also went up by 14.8 per cent to Rs 6,069.18 crore from Rs 5,282.59 crore paid in the corresponding month of FY23. Of the total Rs 60,140.42 crore paid to the government exchequer in FY24, maximum amount of Rs 13,268.55 crore was made to the state government of Jharkhand, followed by Rs 12,836.20 crore to the Odisha government, Rs 11,890.79 crore to Chhattisgarh, Rs 10,865.96 crore to Madhya Pradesh, and Rs 6,188.89 crore to Maharashtra among others. The coal-producing states earned the <keyword id="19945274" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="revenue" source="keywords">revenue</keyword> from royalty, District Mineral Foundation (DMF) and National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET) among others. The government had earlier said that the coal-producing states earned a revenue of Rs 1.52 lakh crore in the last nine years from royalty, DMF and NMET. Coal mining sector has proved to be a big booster for the economic growth of the states that produce fossil fuel. State governments are entitled to receive 14 per cent of royalty on the sale price of coal and 30 per cent of the royalty as contribution towards the proposed district mineral foundations (DMFs)-- which is meant to support project-affected people---and two per cent of NMET from dry-fuel produced by the coal companies and also the private sector. In case of captive, commercial mines states are also entitled to receive the revenue share offered by the auction holder in a transparent bidding process. Apart from this, state governments also benefit from increased employment, land compensation, increased investment in allied infrastructure like railways, road and several other economic benefits. Coal India's production and off-take are pegged at 838 MT for FY'25. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/banks/news/following-kotak-mahindra-banks-strong-q4-numbers-analysts-reset-stock-target-up-to-1900-worried-about-reputation-impact-than-financial-says-ceo/articleshow/109882571.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/banks/news/following-kotak-mahindra-banks-strong-q4-numbers-analysts-reset-stock-target-up-to-1900-worried-about-reputation-impact-than-financial-says-ceo/articleshow/109882571.cms" target="_blank">Following Kotak Mahindra Bank’s strong Q4 numbers, analysts reset stock target up to ₹1,900; Worried about reputation impact than financial, says CEO</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/worldwide-tablet-shipments-grow-in-q1-2024-after-two-years-of-decline/articleshow/109876390.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/worldwide-tablet-shipments-grow-in-q1-2024-after-two-years-of-decline/articleshow/109876390.cms" target="_blank">Worldwide tablet shipments grow in Q1 2024 after two years of decline</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/global-smartphone-shipments-grow-by-6-in-q1-2024-samsung-retakes-the-top-spot/articleshow/109817280.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/global-smartphone-shipments-grow-by-6-in-q1-2024-samsung-retakes-the-top-spot/articleshow/109817280.cms" target="_blank">Global smartphone shipments grow by 6% in Q1 2024, Samsung retakes the top spot</a>

Coal India's contribution to govt exchequer rises 6.4% to ₹60,140 crore in FY24

<ul><li>The 'Bharat Petroleum <keyword id="418383" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="voluntary-retirement-scheme">Voluntary Retirement Scheme</keyword> - 2020 (BPVRS-2020)' opened on July 23 and will close on August 13. </li><li>A senior company official said the <keyword id="6362193" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="vrs">VRS</keyword> has been brought to offer an exit option for any employee or officer who does not want to work under a private management. </li><li><keyword id="44555" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BPCL">BPCL</keyword>, where the government is selling its entire 52.98 per cent stake, has about 20,000 employees. </li></ul>State-owned BPCL has brought a voluntary retirement scheme for its employees ahead of the government privatising the country's third biggest <keyword id="911903" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="oil-refiner">oil refiner</keyword> and second-largest fuel retailer. "The Corporation has decided to offer a Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS), with a view to enable employees, who are not in a position to continue in service of the Corporation due to various personal reasons, to request for grant of voluntary retirement from the services of the Corporation," <keyword id="170673" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bharat-Petroleum-Corp-Ltd">Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd</keyword> (BPCL) said in an internal notice to its employees. The 'Bharat Petroleum Voluntary Retirement Scheme - 2020 (BPVRS-2020)' opened on July 23 and will close on August 13. A senior company official said the VRS has been brought to offer an exit option for any employee or officer who does not want to work under a private management. "Some employees feel their role, position or place of posting may change once BPCL is privatised. So this scheme offers them an exit option," he said. BPCL, where the government is selling its entire 52.98 per cent stake, has about 20,000 employees. The official said 5 to 10 per cent of employees are expected to opt for VRS. Expressions of Interest (EoI) for buying BPCL are due on July 31. All employees who have completed 45 years of age will be eligible for the scheme, according to the VRS notice accessed by . It, however, excludes active sportspersons (employees recruited as sportsperson who are yet to be deployed in mainstream) and board level executives. "Employees opting for VRS would be eligible to receive a compensation payment equivalent to two months' salary for each completed year of service or the monthly salary at the time of voluntary retirement multiplied by the balance months of service left before normal data of retirement on superannuation, whichever is less," it said. Repatriation expenses, as payable in case of retirement, will also be paid. Employees who opt for voluntary retirement will be eligible for medical benefits under Post Retirement Medical Benefit Scheme. Also, they would be eligible for encashment of leaves including casual, earned and privilege leaves. While those opting for VRS will neither be eligible for employment in company's joint ventures nor be engaged as retainers/consultants/advisors, any persons facing disciplinary action will not be eligible for the scheme, the notice said. BPCL will give buyers ready access to 15.3 per cent of India's oil refining capacity and 22 per cent of the fuel market share in the world's fastest-growing energy market. BPCL has a market capitalisation of about Rs 97,247 crore and the government stake at current prices is worth over Rs 51,500 crore. The successful bidder will also have to make an open offer to other shareholders for acquiring another 26 per cent at the acquisition price. <keyword id="6369532" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Privatisation">Privatisation</keyword> of BPCL is essential for meeting the record Rs 2.1 lakh crore target the finance minister has set from disinvestment proceeds in the budget for 2020-21. BPCL operates four refineries in Mumbai (Maharashtra), Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh), and Numaligarh (Assam) with a combined capacity of 38.3 million tonnes per annum, which is 15.3 per cent of India's total refining capacity of 249.8 million tonnes. While the Numaligarh refinery will be carved out of BPCL and sold to a PSU, the new buyer of the company will get 35.3 million tonnes of refining capacity. BPCL also owns about 16,309 petrol pumps and 6,113 LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) distributor agencies in the country. Besides, it has 51 LPG bottling plants. The company distributes 22 per cent of petroleum products consumed in the country by volume as of March this year and has more than a fifth of the 256 aviation fuel stations in India. The government has appointed Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India LLP as its transaction advisor for the strategic disinvestment process. The government of India is proposing strategic disinvestment of its entire shareholding in BPCL comprising of 114.91 crore equity shares, which constitutes 52.98 per cent of BPCL's equity share capital, along with transfer of management control to a strategic buyer (except BPCL's equity shareholding of 61.65 per cent in Numaligarh Refinery Ltd), the notice inviting offer said. The bidding will be a two-stage affair, with qualified bidders in the first EoI phase being asked to make a financial bid in the second round. Public sector undertakings (PSUs) "are not eligible to participate" in the privatisation, the offer document said. Any private company having a net worth of USD 10 billion is eligible for bidding and a consortium of not more than four firms will be allowed to bid, it said. According to the bidding criteria, the lead member of the consortium must hold 40 per cent stake and others must have a minimum net worth of USD 1 billion. Changes in the consortium are allowed within 45 days, but the lead member cannot be changed, it added. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/health/news/coovid-vaccine-from-oxford-serum-institute-and-astrazeneca-shows-promising-immune-response/articleshow/77069321.cms">The COVID-19 vaccine from Oxford and AstraZeneca shows 'promising' results in early human trials</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/entertainment/news/dil-bechara-kissing-booth-2-and-other-movies-you-can-watch-on-netflix-amazon-prime-disneyhotstar-this-week/slidelist/77142498.cms">Dil Bechara, Kissing Booth 2 and other movies you can watch on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+Hotstar this week</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/work-from-home-effect-these-companies-are-shelling-out-for-employees-power-bills-internet-cost-and-more/articleshow/77139229.cms">WFH effect – These companies are paying for employees' power bills, internet cost and more</a>

Bharat Petroleum offers voluntary retirement scheme before privatisation

New Delhi, Jan 8 () Steel workers' body SWFI on Wednesday condemned the government's decision to divest equity shares of six PSUs, including MMTC, in Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL).
 The Cabinet on Wedesday approved divestment of some shares of MMTC, National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd (BHEL), Odisha Mining Corporation, Odisha Investment Corporation and MECON in Neelachal Ispat.
 "We strongly condemn the decision," Steel Workers Federation of India (SWFI) Working President P K Das said while reacting to the development.
 He said his organisation opposes sale of any public sector unit be it steel or any other sector.
 Referring to the stressed steel assets which had to undergo NCLT proceedings, he said it must to be noted that no private sector could run their steel plant well.
 "In private sector, Bhushan Steel plant was sold after becoming bankrupt. Adhunik Steel is closed. Today hundreds of steel plants are closed in private sector, but public sector PSUs including NMDC, RINL are doing well and government wants to sell which is doing well," he said and most of the "entities in private sector are sick, bankrupt or sold."
 He further said that SWFI workers will go on strike if the government considers a decision like today's with RINL and NMDC.
 The government must note one thing that there are no buyers in the market, no one wants to invest any amount due to the financial crunch in market.
 In his reaction, Jayanta Roy who is senior vice-president and group head (corporate sector ratings) at ICRA, said. " The proposed sale would have a number of attractions to the strategic investor in the form of a captive iron ore mine which is under development, and a locational advantage of being in Odisha and in proximity to ports. On the other hand, the company may benefit in terms of private sector efficiencies if an experienced player is brought in."
 NINL is a joint venture company, in which four central PSUs -- MMTC, National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) and MECON -- and two Odisha government companies IPICOL and Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) are shareholders.
 MMTC holds 49.78 per cent share in NINL, followed by OMC (20.47 per cent), IPICOL (12 per cent), NMDC (10.10 per cent), while MECON and BHEL hold 0.68 per cent each. ABI MKJ

Steel workers' body SWFI opposes govt nod to sale of shares of PSUs in Neelachal Ispat

New Delhi, Mar 1 () Mining baron Anil Agarwal, who was among the first to evince interest in bidding for Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL), says valuation of the firm is too high and his company Vedanta will evaluate bidding for it when the final bid document is out. At the close of trading on Friday, BPCL had a market capitalisation of Rs 92,464.40 crore. At this price, the government's Rs 52.98 per cent stake that is being sold in the country's largest privatisation exercise is worth about Rs 49,000 crore. The acquirer will also be required to make an open offer for another 26 per cent stake from minority shareholders which will cost another Rs 24,000 crore. "We certainly are interested in bidding but the valuations are too high," Agarwal told here. "The bid document is not yet out and we will carefully evaluate bidding once the offer document is out." He said share price has moved up 40-50 per cent since the time the government announced its plan to sell stake in November last year. "There are lot of synergies BPCL has with our business. I am the largest private oil producer in the country" and BPCL has refineries to process it and a network of petrol pumps to sell fuel produced from it, he said. "We will evaluate bidding (for BPCL), let's see." The government plans to sell its entire 52.98 per cent stake in BPCL that will give buyers ready access to 14 per cent of India's oil refining capacity and about one-fifth of the fuel market share in the world's fastest-growing energy market. "We are in oil business. We produce 30 per cent oil and gas of the country and this has natural synergies with BPCL," Agarwal said. A two-stage bidding process is to be followed for privatisation of BPCL, wherein request for proposal or RFP in the first stage will be followed by due diligence-cum-bidding by qualified bidders in the second phase. Privatisation of BPCL is essential for meeting the record Rs 2.1 lakh crore target Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has set from disinvestment proceeds in the Budget for 2020-21 fiscal that starts April. BPCL operates four refineries in Mumbai (Maharashtra), Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh) and Numaligarh (Assam) with a combined capacity of 38.3 million tonnes per annum, which is 15 per cent of India's total refining capacity of 249.4 million tonnes. While the Numaligarh refinery will be carved out of BPCL and sold to a PSU, the new buyer of the company will get 35.3 million tonnes of refining capacity. It also owns 15,177 petrol pumps and 6,011 LPG distributor agencies in the country. Besides, it has 51 LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) bottling plants. The company distributes 21 per cent of petroleum products consumed in the country by volume as of March this year and has more than a fifth of the 250 aviation fuel stations in India. ANZ ABMABM

BPCL valuation high, evaluating bid: Anil Agarwal

New Delhi, Nov 21 () Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday hinted that public sector firms such as Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) may not be allowed to bid for buying government stake in Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), for which a buyer may have to shell out as much as Rs 90,000 crore.
 The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs had on Wednesday decided to sell the government's entire stake in the country's second-largest state refiner BPCL and India's largest shipping company Shipping Corporation of India (SCI). It also approved privatisation of Container Corporation of India while also giving nod to paring stake below 51 per cent in select public sector undertakings but without losing control.
 "Since 2014, we have a clear vision that the government has no business to be in business," Pradhan told reporters here. "We have examples of 2-3 sectors such as telecom and aviation where ushering in private participation has led to customers benefiting from price cuts, efficiency, and better service. And yesterday (on Wednesday), several reformist decisions were taken."
 BPCL will give buyers ready access to 14 per cent of India's oil refining capacity and about one-fourth of the fuel marketing infrastructure in the world's fastest-growing energy market.
 It, however, will be sold after carving out Numaligarh Refinery from its portfolio and given to a pubic sector unit.
 "Numaligarh refinery was set up as per Assam Accord and it will remain a public sector unit. Assam Chief Minister had requested Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) to retain public sector character of Numaligarh Refinery and that has been accepted," he said.
 Pradhan, however, did not say if IOC or Oil India Ltd, which already has a stake in the refinery and also supplies crude oil to it, will take over the unit.
 "The details have to be worked out," he said. "Finance Minister (Nirmala Sitharaman) has stated that the privatisation of BPCL will happen this fiscal and we hope to adhere to the timeline."
 Asked if public sector units will be allowed to bid for the government's 53.29 per cent stake, he said: "Nitty gritty and details of the disinvestment process will have to be worked out but when I say the government has no business to be in business, it is indicative of possible future course of action."
 At the current trading price of BPCL, the government's 53.29 per cent stake is valued at a shade less than Rs 62,000 crore. On top of this, the acquirer will have to make an open offer to buy an additional 26 per cent stake from minority shareholders for about Rs 30,000 crore.
 Last year, the government had sold its entire stake in Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) to state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) for Rs 36,915 crore.
 Pradhan said the privatisation of BPCL was following the policy of ushering in greater competition in sectors that can sustain on their own.
 Greater private participation, like in the telecom and aviation sector, will bring about efficiencies and better service to consumers, he said.
 The CCEA had on Wednesday also approved the sale of an entire 63.75 per cent government holding in SCI and 30.8 per cent out of the government's 54.80 per cent stake in Container Corp of India (Concor).
 Besides, the government will sell its entire holding in THDC India Ltd (THDCIL) and North Eastern Electric Power Corp Ltd (NEEPCO) to state-owned power generator NTPC Ltd, the finance minister has said.
 The government holds 74.23 per cent in THDCIL and 100 per cent NEEPCO.
 Parallelly, the Cabinet had also approved reducing government stake in select PSUs such as IOC to below 51 per cent while continuing to retain management control.
 The management control will continue to be retained with the government after considering equity held by other state-owned companies in the divested firm.
 The government, currently, holds 51.5 per cent in IOC and another 25.9 per cent through state-owned Life Insurance Corp of India (LIC), and explorers ONGC and Oil India Ltd (OIL), and the government can potentially sell 26.4 per cent for about Rs 33,000 crore.
 A similar formula can also apply to ONGC and gas utility GAIL India Ltd.
 The stake sales are critical for the government to meet its disinvestment target of Rs 1.05 lakh crore set for the current financial year.
 At current prices, the government's 30.8 per cent stake in Concor is worth about Rs 10,800 crore, while stake sale in SCI will fetch just over Rs 2,000 crore.
 BPCL operates four refineries in Mumbai, Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh) and Numaligarh (Assam) with a combined capacity of 38.3 million tonnes per annum, which is 15 per cent of India's total refining capacity of 249.4 million tonnes. After removing three million tonnes capacity of the Numaligarh refinery, the new buyer will get 35.3 million tonnes of refining capacity.
 It also owns 15,177 petrol pumps and 6,011 LPG distributor agencies in the country. Besides, it has 51 LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) bottling plants. The company distributes 21 per cent of petroleum products consumed in the country by volume as of March this year and has more than a fifth of the 250 aviation fuel stations in the country.
 The government is keen to get international energy majors such as Saudi Aramco, Total SA of France and ExxonMobil to operate in the downstream fuel marketing business so as to bring in greater competition.
 Currently, 95 per cent of retail petrol and diesel sales and near 100 per cent of cooking gas (LPG) and kerosene sales are controlled by the public sector units.
 As on March 31, BPCL reported cash and cash equivalents of around Rs 5,300 crore, against Rs 10,900 crore of debt maturing over the next 15 months. ANZ HRS

IOC, other PSUs not to bid for BPCL, hints Pradhan

New Delhi, Jun 18 () Opening of the coal sector to private players will generate jobs, reduce dependence on fuel import, stimulate the economy and catalyse the country's path towards a USD 5-trillion economy, the industry said on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the virtual auction process for 41 coal blocks for commercial mining, which is expected to garner Rs 33,000 crore of capital investment in the country over next 5-7 years. Industry body Ficci said that commercial mining will modernise the coal sector. "This landmark reform will unlock country's natural resources," Ficci President Sangita Reddy said. CII stated that the de-nationalisation of the coal sector will help in bringing new investment and advancement in technology. "It is a watershed moment in the history of the coal sector for India. The step reflects the GOI's firm commitment in moving towards AtmaNirbhar Bharat. It is also important to look at important aspects as quality of coal and coal prices at the outset so that the sector is streamlined in terms of policy and regulations to support India's vision," CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said in a statement. The auction of coal mines for commercial mining and relaxation of FDI in the coal sector will create a lot of interest for companies engaged in the coal mining and associated activities such as mine developer and operator (MDO) sectors, Arvind Sharma, Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas &amp; Co said. The timing of launch of the commercial mining is critical since the reserves must be utilised to build the country before the focus shifts to entirely to renewable energy, he said. Stating that launch of auction process for commercial coal mining was a transformative reform in the energy sector, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas Partner Ramanuj Kumar pointed out that environmental concerns and delays are likely to result in muted interest from international investors. "We expect strong interest from domestic mining and power companies since bid terms are attractive as compared to other mineral auctions," Kumar said. Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran was of the view that with reforms like this, the mining sector can easily contribute 5 per cent to India's GDP. Commercial mining will be a very successful initiative and it will generate huge amount of growth, significantly reduce imports and create lots of jobs, he said. Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal also said that commercial mining will create infrastructure and people in the backward region will get employment. "The bold decision taken by the Prime Minister to open up coal sector will result in massive job creation and generate a lot of revenue as we can replace coal import worth Rs 80,000 crore every year," he said in a tweet. "This will also support the industry to bring down the cost. In these difficult times, it will be very useful for the growth of the country," he tweeted. The Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) said while India's coal demand is likely to increase in the next decade, the investment in green-field projects to expand production capacity must be examined more carefully. "Import dependence is not a bad thing, especially if it defers or removes investment needs into new mines in pristine environments in the country, CEEW Research Fellow Karthik Ganesan said. The government's attempt to promote coal-gasification is also puzzling, he said, adding that from a climate standpoint, it defeats India's efforts to rein in CO2 emissions. "Power generation and industrial applications that use syngas are 40 per cent - 80 per cent higher in CO2 emissions, as compared to those that use natural gas. Syngas is not cheap either. Data from the IEA suggests we might as well unlock deep-water gas instead of pursuing syngas, given the delivered price could be 4 – 6 USD/mmbtu higher than conventional gas. "Also, while the use of syngas reduces air pollution outcomes, as compared to burning coal, it comes with a significant risk of polluting underground water resources with phenols and aromatic compounds that are generated in-situ and that could migrate out of the generation wells," Ganesan said. In this auction process, 41 coal mines are on offer which includes fully explored and partially explored mines. These include 4 coking coal mines which are fully explored mines. These coal mines are located in states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha. The auction process will be a two-stage tender process with technical and financial bidding. SID NAM MR

'Commercial coal mining to stimulate economy; catalyse path toward USD 5 trn economy'

New Delhi, Jan 16 () Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the country's biggest oil firm, will decide on bidding to buy Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) after the government lists out rules for the stake sale, its Chairman Sanjiv Singh said Thursday.
 The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs had on November 21, 2019 decided to sell government's entire 53.29 per cent stake in country's second-largest state refiner BPCL, but a tender for sale hasn't yet been issued.
 "The expression of interest (EoI) (for BPCL stake sale) hasn't been issued yet. We don't know the conditions. We have no information whether PSUs are allowed to bid or not," Singh told reporters here. "I cannot comment if IOC will bid or not unless we see the conditions set out in the EoI."
 He said a decision on the issue can only be taken once there is clarity on the bidding process the government intends to follow.
 Soon after the Cabinet decision, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had hinted that PSUs will be kept out of BPCL privatisation.
 "Since 2014, we have a clear vision that the government has no business to be in business," Pradhan had said on November 22, 2019. "We have examples of 2-3 sectors such as telecom and aviation where ushering in private participation has led to customers benefiting from price cuts, efficiency, and better service."
 Asked if the company has been told that PSUs will be kept out, Singh said there is no information on whether state-owned firms can bid or not.
 BPCL will give the buyer ready access to 14 per cent of India's oil refining capacity and about one-fourth of the fuel marketing infrastructure in the world's fastest-growing energy market.
 It, however, will be sold after carving out Numaligarh Refinery from its portfolio and given to a pubic sector unit. Numaligarh Refinery Ltd is also to be sold out to a PSU, possibly through a bidding process.
 Singh said he cannot comment if the company will bid for the Numaligarh Refinery unless tender conditions are revealed.
 "We don't know if Numaligarh Refinery will be sold with marketing infrastructure or without its marketing infrastructure. We have to wait for details before IOC can take any decision," he said.
 Numaligarh refinery was set up as per the Assam Peace Accord and the government has decided to keep it in the public sector.
 At the current trading price of BPCL, the government's 53.29 per cent stake is valued at around Rs 53,400 crore. On top of this, the acquirer will have to make an open offer to buy an additional 26 per cent stake from minority shareholders for about Rs 26,000 crore.
 The price of BPCL has been hammered since the November 21 CCEA decision. On that day, the government stood to gain Rs 62,000 crore from privatisation but will now get about Rs 8,000 crore less.
 The stake sales are critical for the government to meet its disinvestment target of Rs 1.05 lakh crore set for the current financial year.
 The government had allowed PSUs to bid when it sold petro retailer IBP Co Ltd in 2002. IOC had bagged the government's 33 per cent stake in IBP for Rs 1,153.68 crore or Rs 1,551 a share. 
 The other bidders for IBP were Reliance Industries, Royal Dutch Shell, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, BPCL, and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation. The reserve price for IBP was Rs 337 crore.
 Last year, the government sold its entire stake in Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) to state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) for Rs 36,915 crore.
 BPCL operates four refineries in Mumbai, Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh) and Numaligarh (Assam) with a combined capacity of 38.3 million tonnes per annum, which is 15 per cent of India's total refining capacity of 249.4 million tonnes. 
 After removing 3 million tonnes capacity of Numaligarh refinery, the new buyer will get 35.3 million tonnes of refining capacity.
 It also owns 15,177 petrol pumps and 6,011 LPG distributor agencies in the country. Besides, it has 51 LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) bottling plants. The company distributes 21 per cent of petroleum products consumed in the country by volume as of March this year and has more than a fifth of the 250 aviation fuel stations in the country.
 The government is keen to get international energy majors such as Saudi Aramco, Total SA of France and ExxonMobil to operate in the downstream fuel marketing business so as to bring in greater competition.
 Currently, 95 per cent of retail petrol and diesel sales and near 100 per cent of cooking gas (LPG) and kerosene sales are controlled by the public sector units.
 As on March 31, BPCL reported cash and cash equivalents of around Rs 5,300 crore against Rs 10,900 crore of debt maturing over the next 15 months. ANZ RVK

IOC to decide on bidding for BPCL after govt lays out rules: Chairman

Buyers of loss-making airline Air India and oil firm Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) will not get a free hand to shed excess workforce as the government will build in certain protection to employees in the share sale agreement, DIPAM Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said.
 Public sector companies often have more people on rolls than their private sector counterparts and companies wanting to take them over would likely to right-size them to remove inefficiencies.
 In an interview with , the secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) said the government will follow a two-stage bidding process for selling its entire holding in Air India and BPCL.
 First preliminary interest from potential bidders is invited, followed by they being given access of data room on the companies for due diligence. In the second stage, price bids are invited.
 While in the case of Air India, the expression of interest (EoI) has been invited by March 17, an offer seeking the same for BPCL is likely to be floated in the next few days.
 Asked if the bidders will get a free hand to right-size the companies after the acquisition, Pandey said, "There will be certain protection to employees and there will be other conditionalities and this will be listed out in the share purchase agreement (SPA)."
 He did not give details of the conditionalities. An SPA will signed with the acquirer who offers the highest bid for buying out government stake.
 The government is selling its entire 100 per cent stake in Air India but wants effective control to stay with Indian nationals. The airline, which started as a Tata Airlines in 1932 and was later acquired by the government, has not made profits since 2007. It has a total debt of Rs 60,074 crore, of which bidder has to takeover Rs 23,286.5 crore.
 In the case of BPCL, the government is selling its entire 53.29 per cent stake in the company that will give buyers ready access to 14 per cent of India's oil refining capacity and about one-fifth of the fuel market share in the world's fastest-growing energy market.
 "There is a two-stage process. There will be EoI and request for proposal or RFP (in the first stage) and due diligence-cum-bidding stage (in the second)," Pandey said. "After the bidding stage, the highest bidder (will be identified). The highest bidder meeting the reserve price will sign the SPA."
 Asked about concerns over valuation of BPCL, he said DIPAM has valuation methodologies. "There is an independent asset valuer and then there is a transaction advisor who will do the business valuation. Then, the value will be arrived at. But, this valuation or the reserve price will not be revealed unless the financial bids are received."
 Officers' unions of blue-chip public sector undertakings (PSUs) have opposed the government's decision to privatise India's second-biggest oil firm BPCL, saying family silver worth Rs 9 lakh crore is being sold for a fraction of the amount.
 BPCL has a market capitalisation of about Rs 1 lakh crore and the government stake at current prices is worth about Rs 54,000 crore. The successful bidder will also have to make an open offer to other shareholders for acquiring another 26 per cent at the same price.
 Privatisation of Air India and BPCL is essential for meeting the record Rs 2.1 lakh crore target Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has set from disinvestment proceeds in the Budget for 2020-21.
 This is the second attempt for sale of Air India after the failed attempt in 2018. Losses notwithstanding, it has some lucrative assets that include prized slots at London's choked Heathrow airport, a fleet of more than 100 planes and thousands of trained pilots and crew.
 BPCL operates four refineries in Mumbai, Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh) and Numaligarh (Assam) with a combined capacity of 38.3 million tonnes per annum, which is 15 per cent of India's total refining capacity of 249.4 million tonnes. While the Numaligarh refinery will be carved out of BPCL and sold to a PSU, the new buyer of the company will get 35.3 million tonnes of refining capacity.
 It also owns 15,177 petrol pumps and 6,011 LPG distributor agencies in the country. Besides, it has 51 LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) bottling plants. The company distributes 21 per cent of petroleum products consumed in the country by volume as of March this year and has more than a fifth of the 250 aviation fuel stations in the country. JD HRS See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/indias-new-rocket-will-let-isro-launch-satellites-month-on-month/articleshow/73892024.cms?src=hp_wh">India’s new rocket will let ISRO launch satellites month-on-month</a>

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