The Government has decided to put on hold its planned five per cent stake sale in ONGC. The stake sale has not been put off indefinitely, but for a short period, said a senior Finance Ministry official.

In a notice to the stock exchanges on Friday, ONGC said that the “selling shareholder” has decided not to proceed with the offer for sale that was slated to open on September 20.

“It shall evaluate the decision on issue in due course”, the company said. The Government is looking to offload five per cent stake in ONGC, which should have yielded about Rs 11,000 crore at current market price.

The ONGC's share sale, which was initially scheduled for March, has been postponed several times this year. The latest deferment is being attributed to poor market conditions.

The Economic Affairs Secretary, Mr R. Gopalan, had few days back said that the Government was confident of meeting the disinvestment target of Rs 40,000 crore set for 2011-12. On Friday, he told a TV channel that the Government can't go ahead with disinvestment in a volatile market and that it does not want to sell PSU shares recklessly.

This delay will add to the worries of the Government that is already grappling with the runaway inflation in the economy.

krsrivats@thehindu.co.in

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