Shares of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) today surged over 6 per cent on the bourses, as the company has got the consent for acquiring 51.11 per stake Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. The transaction , which will be concluded in the next few days, will be for ₹36,915 crore.
HPCL, however, dropped 4 per cent on the bourses.
After opening strong at Rs 199, the stock surged 6.40 per cent to an intra-day high of Rs 206 on the BSE. On the NSE, the stock opened at Rs 198, then jumped to an high of Rs 204.40, up 5.52 per cent over the previous closing price.
On the other hand, HPCL stock touched a low of Rs 400.55 on the BSE, down 3.84 per cent over its previous closing price. On the NSE, the scrip fell to an early low of Rs 409.55.
According to a statement issued by ONGC, it has entered into a share purchase agreement with the President of India for acquiring the 778,845,375 equity shares of HPCL (representing 51.11 per cent of HPCL) on January 20, 2018. The transaction is expected to be completed before this month-end.
This acquisition is in line with the government’s objective to combine the Central Public Sector Enterprises to give them the capacity to bear higher risks and avail themselves of economies of scale.