Govt to sell 10% stake in CIL on Jan 30; to get Rs 24,000 cr

The government will sell up to 10 per cent stake in the blue chip Coal India Ltd (CIL) through offer for sale on Friday and is expected to mop up around Rs 24,000 crore (Rs 240 billion) at current market price.

"The (CIL share) sale shall...commence on January 30 and shall close on the same date at 3.30 pm," CIL said a stock exchange filing. The offer will have 20 per cent reservation for retail investors.

The floor price for the stake sale would be announced tomorrow after the close of market hours. Shares of CIL closed at Rs 384.05, up 0.27 per cent over previous close on the BSE.

As per a circular by the stock exchanges, government will sell 5 per cent stake or over 31.58 crore shares through an offer for sale (OFS) with an option to sell an additional 5 per cent stake.

At the current market price, the sale of up to 10 per cent stake or over 63.17 crore CIL shares would fetch over Rs 24,000 crore to the exchequer.

Coal India would be second company to hit the markets under the government's disinvestment programme.

In December, government sold 5 per cent stake in SAIL to garner over Rs 1,700 crore. For the current fiscal, the government has budgeted to raise Rs 43,425 crore through disinvestment in PSUs.