Essar Oil raises $115 mn via FCCB issue

Essar Oil today said that it has procured $115 million (nearly Rs 533 crore) of the proposed $300 million it had planned to raise through the issue of bonds to promoter company Essar Energy Holdings.

The money is supposed to part-finance its expansion plans.

On June 15, the company, belonging to Ruias-promoted business conglomerate Essar Group, issued foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) worth $115 million due on June 2028 to its promoter company, it said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The FCCBs are convertible into global depository shares (GDSs) of the company at the option of bondholders, at a conversion price of Rs 138 per share, the filing added.
    
On June 4, the company decided to raise up to $300 million through the issue of FCCBs in one or more tranches on a preferential offer basis to promoter company Essar Energy Holdings Ltd.
    
Essar Oil shareholders had, on April 22, approved raising $1.7 billion through the sale of securities to promoters.
    
The funds were to be raised from international markets through American Depository Receipts, Global Depository Receipts and Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (CBS).
    
Essar is expanding its Vadinar refinery in Gujarat from 300,000 bpd (barrels per day) to 375,000 bpd, with the complexity being increased from 6.1 to 11.8.
    
Shares of Essar Oil were trading at Rs 126.80 on the BSE, down 0.31 per cent from the previous close.