The government has received three preliminary bids for buying of controlling stake in India's second-largest fuel retailer Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Wednesday. Vedanta had on November 18 confirmed putting in an expression of interest ) for buying the government's 52.98 percent stake in BPCL. The other two bidders are said to be global funds, one of them being Apollo Global Management.

Pradhan said the government intends to privatize some of the state-owned companies to bring in professionalism and competition. "As I have earlier said the government is committed to offloading its share from some state-owned companies through which more professionalism and competition will come. We are committed and keen on that aspect," he said.

A special purpose vehicle floated by the BSE-listed Vedanta Ltd and its London-based parent Vedanta Resources submitted an expression of interest before the close of the deadline on November 16. The government is selling its entire 52.98 percent stake in BPCL as part of plans to raise a record Rs 2.1 lakh crore from disinvestment proceeds in 2020-21 (April 2020 to March 2021).

However, the share price of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd has plunged by nearly a fourth since the time the strategic sale was approved in November last year. At Wednesday's trading price of Rs 385 on BSE, the government's 52.98 percent stake in BPCL is worth just over Rs 44,200 crore. Also, the acquirer would have to make an open offer for buying another 26 percent stake from the public, which would cost about Rs 21,600 crore.

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