The government of India is considering privatising Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), the second largest oil refining and fuel retailing company in the country, in which the state owns a 53.3% stake. BPCL operates four refineries at Mumbai, Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh) and Numaligarh (Assam). Moreover, it operates around 15,000 gas stations (23% of the total oil stations in India) and around 6,000 LPG distributors (25% of the total).
BPCL is currently valued at INR 1,020bn (US$14.3bn) and the sale of an interest in the company to a strategic partner (private company and/or foreign company) could help the government meet a part of its INR 1,050bn (US$14.7bn) divestment programme. However, the potential privatisation will have to be approved by the Parliament; in 2003, the Supreme Court ruled that the government could privatise BPCL and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) only after the Parliament amends a previous law nationalising the two companies.
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