ONGC raises Stake in OPaL to 94.04% for Rs 5,594.80 Crore

New Delhi: State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp. has increased its stake in ONGC Petro Additions Ltd. to 94.04% by acquiring additional equity for Rs 5,594.80 crore.

According to ONGC's exchange filing, "ONGC paid Rs 5,594,79,69,350 to OPaL for allotment of 559,47,96,935 equity shares of Rs 10 each." On September 25, ONGC's board approved investments in equity shares of OPaL for Rs 10,501 crore in one or more tranches.

The company will make investments in equity shares of OPaL, as and when offered, subject to a ceiling of Rs 10,501 crore, as approved by the government of India.

OPaL, a subsidiary of ONGC, operates a mega petrochemical complex in Gujarat with a capacity to produce 14 lakh tonnes of polymers and 5 lakh tonnes of chemicals annually. The company reported a turnover of Rs 14,323 crore in FY24. The acquisition aligns with ONGC's objective of vertical integration into downstream petrochemicals, as approved by the Government of India. The investment was made through a rights issue, the statement said.

OPaL was incorporated in 2006 and operates a 5 sq. km. plant in Dahej SEZ in Gujarat. The plant can produce 14 lakh tonnes of polymers and 5 lakh tonnes of chemicals—1,100 KTPA ethylene, 400 KTPA propylene, and the associated units consist of a pyrolysis gasoline hydrogenation unit, a butadiene extraction unit, and a benzene extraction unit.

In the last three years, the turnover of OPaL has consistently declined from Rs 16,065 crore in FY22 to Rs 14,628 crore in FY23. In the preceding financial year, it came down to Rs 14,323 crore.