SAIL divestment by Mar-end, EGoM likely on Mar 19

A ministerial panel is likely to meet on March 19 to decide the floor price for sale of 10.82% stake in SAIL which is expected in the second half of March, Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma said today.

"It (disinvestment of government's shares in SAIL) will happen after March 15, the empowered group of ministers is likely to meet on March 19 (to decide the floor price of the issue)," he said here on the sidelines of launching a coffee table book, 'Indian Saga of Steel'.

He, however, declined to comment on the date of the issue, saying "it has not yet been fixed".

The SAIL stake sale will happen though offer for sale (OFS) route, also known as auction of shares through stock exchanges.

The Empowered Group of Ministers, headed Finance Minister P Chidambaram, decides on the floor price of OFS.

The merchant bankers for the issue include SBI Caps, Kotak Mahindra and Deutsche Bank. Post stake sale, the government's stake would come down to 75% in SAIL.

At current market prices, the issue is likely to fetch "over Rs 3,000 crore" to government's disinvestment kitty, SAIL Chairman C S Verma said.     

The roadshow for the proposed share sale in Steel Authority of India (SAIL) will begin on March 6, he said, adding that it will be held in five countries, including the US, Britain and Singapore.

"The roadshow  is going to start from March 6. One team is going to the US and UK and second team is going to Singapore, Hong Cong and Japan... I am hopeful that the issue will be completed by the end of this month," he said.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs had in July last year approved 10.82% disinvestment in the steel major out of government's 85.82% stake.

Company's shares today closed at its 52-week low level of Rs 68.35 apiece on the BSE, down 4.47%.   

In the Budget 2013-14, the government had revised disinvestment target to Rs 24,000 crore for the current fiscal against the original estimates of Rs 30,000 crore.

So far, the government has raised over Rs 21,500 crore through stake sale in public sector companies.  

Disinvestment of 9.33% stake in trading giant MMTC through the OFS route is scheduled for March 14. The issue is expected to rake in about Rs 300 crore to the exchequer.

For the next fiscal the government has kept the disinvestment target at Rs 55,814 crore. This includes selling part of government residual stakes in companies like Hindustan Zinc, Balco and SUUTI.