ONGC float in March

The public offering of 10 per cent government equity in Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will hit the market by early March.

The draft prospectus was expected to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) by January-end, ONGC Chairman and Managing Director Subir Raha told the media on the sidelines of an oil and gas conference here today.

He said ONGC expected to get Sebi's approval by the second week of February. Following this, roadshows will be held both in India and abroad.

In India, the roadshows will be held in all the state capitals, including Guwahati and Kohima. Singapore, Hong Kong, London, New York, Boston, Los Angeles and Dubai will also host the roadshows.

Raha said the price band for the book-building issue would be determined after the roadshows, while the final offer price and allotment would be settled by the government in the second week of March.

He said the shares would be offered in lots of 5 or 10. There would not be any stock split, he asserted.

The government holds around 84 per cent stake in ONGC, while the remaining is shared by other oil PSUs under a cross-holding deal signed in 1999.

Raha also said the corporation would offer 18 marginal fields to the private sector for development. These fields have 8 million tonnes of oil reserves and 16 billion cubic metres of gas.