British energy major BG Group, on Wednesday, said it had reached an agreement to sell its majority stake in Gujarat Gas Co. Ltd. (GGCL) to the State government-run GSPC for over Rs.2,460 crore.
The BG Group said it would sell its 65.12 per cent stake in GGCL to GSPC Distribution Networks Ltd. (GDNL), a subsidiary of the Gujarat State Petroleum Corp (GSPC).
The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals, is scheduled to be completed during the first half of 2013, the BG Group said in a statement.
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GDNL is buying GGCL shares at Rs.295 apiece, and it will pay Rs.2,463.80 crore to the BG Group for the acquisition, a statement issued by GSPC said.
This is at a discount to GGCL’s closing price of Rs.337.20 a share on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Wednesday. The company shares had touched a 52-week low of Rs.288 in June, while it had a scaled high of Rs.458.85 in November last.
The agreement involves the sale of BG Asia Pacific Holdings Pte Ltd.’s 65.12 per cent controlling interest in GGCL, India’s largest private sector natural gas distribution company.
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BG Group Chief Executive Frank Chapman said: “With this announcement, we have non-core asset sales agreements in place that will release some $4 billion from our balance sheet. We have made outstanding progress since announcing our two-year $5 billion release programme only eight months ago, and we remain focussed on the successful delivery of our growth projects.”