IOC board approves ₹22,000 cr rights issue, JV for battery swapping

livemint.com:

₹22,000 crore through rights issue. The board of the public sector oil marketing major on Friday approved the raising of capital through rights issue. In a regulatory filing, the company said its board has approved “raising of capital by way of issue of equity shares on right basis upto an amount not exceeding ₹22,000 crore, subject to receipt of necessary statutory approvals as may be required".

The filing said that the details such as issue open and closure dates and issue price would be intimated later. The development comes just a week after the board of another PSU oil marketing company and refiner Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) approved its plans raise ₹18,000 crore through rights issue. The capital raising plans are tandem with these energy giants planning to diversify their operations and move towards energy transition.

Indian oil corporation has set an ambitious net zero target of 2046 and has forayed into newer segments like sustainable aviation fuel and green hydrogen manufacturing. A Fitch Ratings report recently said that the plan of the state-run OMCs to raise equity capital should strengthen their capex spending and the credibility of their emission-reduction plans. IOC is also looking to expand its renewable energy portfolio substantially from the current level of 238 MW, and to install 10,000 electric vehicle charging stations in the next three years, from the current 1,900 charging stations.