Oil Secretary S Sundareshan on Saturday said the government is yet to take a view on the Cairn-Vedanta deal as the it is awaiting a reply from the British energy major regarding specific approvals it has to secure on the 10 product sharing contracts it has with the oil ministry.
"Cairn India has 10 product sharing contracts (PSCs) with the government and going by the nature of the proposed deal, it seems that all these 10 PSCs will have to be specifically looked into.
"We have written to them saying they should seek these approvals but so far there has been no response. As soon as the requests come, they will be examined on merit and a decision will be taken," Sundareshan told newsmen in Mumbai.
The secretary further said, since the Cairn-Vedanta deal involves change in ownership through share sale as well as through sale of participatory interests, each of these PSCs have to be specifically examined.
On August 16, the London-based mining major Vedanta Resources owned by the billionaire NRI Anil Agarwal had agreed to buy up to 61 per cent in Cairn India from Cairn Energy for a consideration of up to USD 9.6 billion. Cairn India is a three-way joint venture with Cairn, the domestic oil and gas major ONGC and Petronas of Malaysia.
Under the agreement, the Edinburgh-based Cairn Energy holds 62.37 per cent in Cairn India, and will sell a maximum of 51 per cent of its stake to Vedanta Group for USD 8.48 billion, and Vedanta will then go in for a USD 3-billion open offer for up to 20 per cent more stake. Petronas has nearly 15 per cent interest in the joint venture with the rest being held by ONGC.
{{/usCountry}}Under the agreement, the Edinburgh-based Cairn Energy holds 62.37 per cent in Cairn India, and will sell a maximum of 51 per cent of its stake to Vedanta Group for USD 8.48 billion, and Vedanta will then go in for a USD 3-billion open offer for up to 20 per cent more stake. Petronas has nearly 15 per cent interest in the joint venture with the rest being held by ONGC.
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