Disinvestment ministry calls fresh bids for Shipping Corp

The government has invited fresh bids for divest 51 per cent of its stake in shipping major Shipping Corporation of India (SCI). The expression of interest by prospective bidders can be submitted till June 6.

According to an official document, under the fresh offer, foreign companies can bid for the controlling 51 per cent stake in the company. Earlier, the foreign firms were allowed to pick up only 24 per cent of company’s equity. The decision regarding this was taken in the last meeting of Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment held in April. While announcing the decision, the Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie had said that allowing foreign companies to bid for higher equity will enable us to get better bids as only two companies, both with limited experience in the sector, had expressed interest to buy SCI’s stake. The government holds 80.12 per cent of the equity in SCI which has a fleet of 86 ships and has also diversified into transportation of liquefied natural gas.