'ONGC interested in picking up equity in oil PSUs'

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation said on Thursday that it would like to acquire public sector oil companies  -- Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation -- as part of a strategy to overcome potential competitors who posed a formidable entry barrier.

“With acquisition we can go into marketing without a long gestation period and against potential competitors who pose formidable entry barriers," ONGC chairman and managing director, Subir Raha said when asked if ONGC would be interested in picking up equity in the oil PSUs.

He said the corporate strategy of ONGC is to continue to focus on core business of exploration and production and at the same time go for vertical integration to secure sustained growth.

Raha's comments coincide with a unanimous view reached at an informal meeting convened by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee late Thursday evening, to resolve the row over divestment process.

At its meeting held on September 7, the CCD had decided to defer the decision on sale of equity in HPCL and BPCL in view of sharp differences among senior Cabinet ministers on the mode of divestment with Defence Minister George Fernandes siding with Petroleum Minister Ram Naik to oppose strategic sale advocated by Divestment Minister Arun Shourie.

ONGC had been recently given the licence for marketing petrol and diesel and the acquisition is of immense strategic interest to the corporation, which is the top-most profit making corporate entity in the country.