Govt to raise Rs 35,000 crore from PSU stake sale

In a bid to raise Rs 35,000 crore out of a total disinvestment target of Rs 72,500 crore for FY18, the government is likely to divest its stakes in seven government owned companies including NHPC, NTPC, Power Finance Corporation, Rural Electrification Corporation, Steel Authority of India, NLC India, and Indian Oil, that are listed on the bourses.  

The government has proposed a disinvestment of 10 per cent stakes in NHPC, NTPC, Power Finance Corporation and Sail, while a disinvestment of 15 per cent in NLC, 5 per cent in Rural electrification corporation and 3 per cent in Indian oil is expected to take place. The present prices of the shares is likely to generate an estimated amount of Rs 35,342 crore for the government.  

Out of the total disinvestment target of  FY18, the government is likely to raise Rs 45,000 crore from offer for stake sales, initial public offerings (IPOs) and buybacks, while an amount of Rs 15,000 crore is expected to be raised from strategic sales and Rs 11,000 crore is expected to be generated from the listing of five state-owned general insurance companies.

The companies to be listed for an IPO includes Bharat Dynamics, Garden Reach Shipbuilders, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, Mishra Dhatu Nigam, North Eastern Electric Power Corporation and MSTC.

The finance ministry’s Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (Dipam) has also allowed the employees of these PSUs to be a part of the offer-for-sale.