GAIL to sell part of its 4.% stake in China Gas Holdings

GAIL India Ltd to sell part of its 4.6% stake in China Gas Holdings. In 2005, GAIL made a strategic investment of Rs 137 crore by acquiring 210 million shares of China Gas Holdings, a Hong Kong-listed, city gas distribution firm. GAIL nevertheless plans to keep a little strategic interest in the company that will help it keep hold of its board position in China Gas Holdings.

Why GAIL plans to sell its stake in China Gas Holdings?

• GAIL invested in China Gas Holdings as China was keen to reproduce India’s achievement in using natural gas as a vehicular and domestic fuel in its cities, mainly Beijing, before the 2008 Olympics. Now, at present, GAIL Gas (GAIL’s wholly owned subsidiary) is taking care of the City Gas Distribution (CGD) business, so GAIL feels that its continuance of investment in China Gas doesn’t seem to conform to the original aim.
• Shares of China Gas Holdings are at present doing well on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, giving the company a market capitalization of around USD 4.4 billion. GAIL has earned only Rs 16.29 crore as dividend on its investment in China Gas over seven years. As the present share price of China Gas Holdings is good thus, GAIL believes it is a good time to sell and re-invest the earnings.

China Gas Holdings

• Natural gas services operator listed on the main board of The Hong Kong Stock Exchange Limited.
• China Gas has exclusive rights to set up gas distribution projects in 42 cities in China.

Major Shareholders in China Gas Holdings:

1. Beijing Enterprises Group (BVI) Company Limited
2. SK E&S Co. Limited
3. China Gas Group Limited (Jointly owned by Fortune Oil PLC and Mr. Liu Ming Hui)
4. China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation ("Sinopec")
5. GAIL (India) Limited ("GAIL")
6. Asian Development Bank ("ADB")

GAIL

– Founded: 1984

– In 1984, GAIL (India) Limited was incorporated as a Central Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoP&NG).

– Headquarters: New Delhi, India

– Key people: Mr. B. C. Tripathi (Chairman & MD)

– Business segments: Natural Gas, Liquid Hydrocarbon, LPG Transmission, Petrochemical, City Gas Distribution, Exploration and Production, GAILTEL and Electricity Generation.

– Previously known as ‘Gas Authority of India Limited’.

– Largest state-owned natural gas processing and distribution company in India.

– GAIL has been conferred with the Maharatna status on Feb 1, 2013, by the Government of India.

GAIL Gas Limited

• Wholly owned subsidiary of GAIL
• For implementation of City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects in four cities: Kota, Dewas, Sonepat & Meerut

GAILTEL

• Telecom & Telemetry services arm of GAIL (India) Limited
• Provides communication services for GAIL’s business critical pipeline Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and commercially leases telecom services to telecom operators across India.

Month: Current Affairs - April, 2013