Despite fears that the sale of BPCL and Air India would be postponed until the next fiscal year, the Centre now hopes to finish the process this fiscal year as the second wave of the coronavirus fades. Officials said the financial bids will now be called in September, despite concerns that they could only be called in the fourth quarter.
They said the Union cabinet would soon consider tweaking the foreign direct investment policy to allow 100 per cent ownership of a state-owned refinery by global players through the automatic route.
The BPCL divestment that involves the sale of the government’s entire 52.98 per cent stake in the PSU, was cleared by the Union cabinet in November 2019. But there has been limited progress because the Covid outbreak has dimmed global oil majors’ interest in the stake sale.
Both the bidders of Air India and BPCL given virtual data room access and the government replying to their queries, officials expect the due diligence to get over in the next three months. They said the bidders are likely to begin site visits soon.