SKF intends to buy out Indian subsidiary

Swedish bearings major Aktiebolaget SKF has announced its intention to buy out its Indian subsidiary SKF India Ltd. The parent company, together with its subsidiaries, currently holds a 53.58 per cent stake in SKF India and proposes to purchase the remaining 46.42 per cent shares.

According to the statement issued to the press, the parent company said: "Full ownership of the company will give SKF increased operational flexibility to support the development of its business and to fully integrate the operations within the SKF Group."

SKF will delist the Indian subsidiary from the Indian bourses, once it gains full control.

However, when contacted the spokesperson of SKF India declined to comment, saying that the announcement had come from the parent company and the Indian am had not issued any statement on the same.

However, SKF India has informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that its board would meet on February 16 to discuss the proposal.

The press statement also said: "The offer to purchase the outstanding publicly held shares is subject to the approval by the shareholders of SKF India Ltd in accordance with the delisting guidelines. Furthermore, the offer requires authorities approval and will be conditional upon SKF's acceptance of the price payable for the shares determined in accordance with the delisting guidelines and achieving the shareholding level required for delisting."

The SKF India scrip today surged 13.58 per cent on the buyout news. The stock opened at Rs 174.70 and touched an intra-day high of Rs 199.30, before closing at Rs 188.65, against a previous close of Rs 166.10 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The scrip registered volumes of 5.59 lakh shares on the Bombay Stock Exchange and 12.95 lakh shares on the National Stock Exchange. The total number of outstanding SKF India shares is 52,732 538.

SKF India's sales in 2003 were SEK 808 million (approximately Rs 500.8 crore) with a profit before taxes of SEK 88 million (approximately Rs 54.5 crore). The company has 1,968 employees and two manufacturing units of bearings in Pune and Bangalore.

While 17.65 per cent stake of SKF India is held by institutional investors, including financial institutions and mutual funds, around 3.11 per cent is held by foreign institutional investors.

Public holding in the company is 21.63 per cent and private corporate bodies hold a 6.22 per cent stake.