Iffco to bid for HPCL

Fertilizer giant Iffco has said that it would bid for oil refiner HPCL if government policy permits PSUs to bid. ‘Yes, we will show our expression of interest (for acquiring government stake and management control) in HPCL’, Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd (IFFCO) managing director U.S. Awasthi said.

Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie said in Parliament that HPCL would be sold to a strategic partner while government shareholding in BPCL would be offloaded to public.

He, however, did not make clear if PSUs would be allowed to participate in the disinvestment of HPCL, which is likely to be hotly contested with companies like Royal Dutch Shell, BP Amoco, Kuwait Petroleum and domestic giant Reliance Industries bidding aggressively as the only opportunity left to enter the lucrative petrol retailing market.