ONGC wants HPCL to make a compelling offer to it for the merger talks to begin, according to sources
Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd’s plans to acquire Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) has hit a cash hurdle, with parent ONGC preferring a cash deal rather than a share-swap, sources aware of the development said.
Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), India’s biggest oil and gas producer, last year completed acquisition of Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) for Rs 36,915 crore. After this takeover, ONGC has two refining subsidiaries — HPCL and MRPL.
Since then, HPCL is keen to get MRPL in its fold citing operational synergies. It has been talking of a combination of cash and share-swap for the deal that will make it India’s third-largest oil refiner. But now, ONGC wants only cash as HPCL shares are on the slide.
