State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) on Thursday said it plans to raise up to USD 2 billion in overseas borrowings through a unique and flexible, Singapore-listed debt instrument that provides it with an option to raise funds at short notice. The funds so raised can be used to repay about Rs 15,000 crore of the company’s existing borrowings, fund acquisitions or meet project/asset expenses. In a press statement, ONGC said it has “set up a Euro Medium Term Note (EMTN) programme of USD 2 billion which will be listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange.”
The EMTN programme would enable ONGC or any of its named subsidiaries to go to market at short notice, say 5 to 10 days, to borrow funds any number of times within a one-year period. For the current EMTN programme, ONGC, its overseas arm ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) or its subsidiaries can access the market. As on June 30, ONGC had a borrowing of about Rs 15,000 crore while another Rs 42,000 crore debt was on OVL books.
