BHEL FPO on hold, profit rises 14.3 percent in 2011-12

Mumbai, April 3 (IANS) State-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) Tuesday said its follow on offer (FPO) for which the draft prospectus was filed with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) last year has been put off.

In a regulatory filing, the power equipment maker said it would withdraw initial papers filed with the capital market regulator. It said the board of directors had approved the decision after "receipt of 'no-objection' for withdrawal of DRHP (draft red herring prospectus) for FPO (follow on public offer) from Department of Heavy industry and Department of Disinvestment."

BHEL had filed DRHP last year for the FPO under which the government planned to offload 5 percent stake in the company. The move was expected to fetch the firm almost Rs.4,000 crore.

The government holds 67.72 percent stake in the company.

BHEL did not give any reasons behind the decision. But Heavy Industries Minister Praful Patel has said the stake sale, which was approved by the cabinet last year, could happen in the 2012-13 fiscal.

An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) led by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee which met in February to decide on the stake sale remained inconclusive and was pushed to the next financial year.

The company also Tuesday declared its provisional net profit which rose 14.3 percent to Rs 68.7 billion for the just concluded 2011/12 fiscal year.

The firm's provisional turnover during 2011-12 was Rs.49,301 crore.

Its order inflows during the period under review were Rs.22,096 crore while the earning per share stood at 28.1.

At the Bombay Stock Exchange, the shares of the company closed 1.50 percent up at Rs.264.20.