Coal India may file final papers for IPO on Sep 25

State-run Coal India is likely to file the red herring prospectus for its initial public issue, through which the government is expecting to raise about Rs 15,000 crore (Rs 150 billion), on September 25.

Capital market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India on Monday cleared the draft papers of Coal India Ltd's IPO, paving the way for the government-run coal giant to file red herring prospectus, sources closed to the issue told PTI.

The regulator has asked the coal major to file the final papers with a few more details.

Sources said CIL board is likely to take up the red herring prospectus on September 25.

"The meeting was earlier scheduled on September 22 but it will take a few more days to collate data asked by Sebi to be filed in the RHP," they said.

Coal India had filed its draft red herring prospectus on August 9 this year.

The PSU's 4-day public issue is expected to take off on October 18. As per the Draft Red Herring Prospectus filed by the company with Sebi in August, CIL will offer 631,636,440 equity shares of a face value of Rs 10 each.

An Empowered Group of Ministers working on CIL IPO would meet by this month-end to decide on the anchor investor issue and on October 12 on the price band of the shares being offered, sources said.

The government expects to raise up to Rs 12,000-15,000 crore (Rs 120-150 billion) through Coal India public issue, billed as the country's largest ever.

Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group firm Reliance Power, in January 2008, raised Rs 11,500 crore (Rs 115 billion) through IPO -- the biggest in India till date.

The government is diluting its 10 per cent stake in CIL through this issue.

At present, the government owns a 100 per cent stake in the company. Citigroup Global Markets India, Deutsche Equities (India) Private, DSP Merrill Lynch, Enam Securities, Kotak Mahindra Capital and Morgan Stanley are the book running lead managers to the issue.