NHPC IPO to be delayed till October

State-run NHPC Ltd's Initial Public Offer (IPO) to raise up to Rs1,590 crore may be delayed till October, as the company is still searching for its sixth non-official director. The company plans to offer 167 crore shares of a face value of Rs10 each at a premium to be decided through book building process.
"We have five non-official directors on board and are in search of the sixth one, as soon as it is finalised we would hit the market, which may be around October," NHPC Chairman and Managing Director S K Garg said.
The company had filed its draft prospectus with market regulator SEBI for the IPO in April last year. It, however, got delayed over appointment of non-official directors on time, a condition mandatory for any company to float an IPO.
NHPC, which accounts for 3.7% of country's total power generation capacity, plans to raise at least Rs1,590 crore through the IPO to part-fund expansion plans.
The company, which by 2012 targets to double power generation capacity from the present 5,200 MW, has outlined expansion plans worth Rs28,000 crore.
It plans to bring 167 crore shares of a face value of Rs10 each, which would be offered at a premium to be decided through book building process.
The IPO would comprise sale of 10% of fresh equity shares and 5% disinvestment of government equity.
NHPC, which is primarily into hydel, but has also ventured into thermal power generation, would invest Rs50,000 crore in the 11th Five-Year Plan to add new generation capacity.
About 11 projects of the company are under construction, of which Teesta Stage-III (West Bengal) would be commissioned in September 2009, Sewa-II (J&K) in 2010 and the remaining eight by 2011-12.