BPCL divestment: Bidding to turn competitive on participation of PE players

MUMBAI: The divestment of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) has long been on investors’ radar. The focus will only sharpen now as the market tries to assess potential bidders to the entity. With Vedanta’s interest already known, news that certain well known private equity investors are also among the interested parties looking to acquire the government’s stakes will boost competition and interest.

Apollo Global Management and Think Gas (promoted by I Squared Capital) are reportedly are among the interested parties. The interest evinced by these global investment management firms also reflects the good response the bidding process is receiving, boosting hope of better valuations.

“The participation of marquee private equity players Apollo and I Squared with experience in the energy sector could heat up the competition,” said analysts at Emkay Global