INDIA BUSINESS WORLD - NOVEMBER 16^th - NOVEMBER 30^th - 2007

BPCL APPROVES ACQUISITION OF 2.5% STAKE IN OIL

The board of Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) has approved the acquisition of 53.5 lakh shares or 2.5% of Oil India (OIL) from the government of India in a pre-IPO placement. The sale and purchase shall be completed within forty eight hours after the issue price is determined through the book building method and approved by the board of directors of OIL. The closing shall be completed prior to Allotment of the equity shares to the public through the initial public offering, said BPCL in notice to the exchanges.

Similarly, the state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is likely to acquire 5% stake and HPCL another 2.5% stake in OIL. Besides this, a 10% stake will be diluted to the public in a public offering. The funds would be used by OIL for exploration and acquisition of oil assets overseas.