Indian Oil Corporation Acquires Mercator Petroleum in Rs 148 Crore Deal

6 Nov 2023 , 01:20 PM

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), a state-owned entity, has successfully acquired Mercator Petroleum through an insolvency proceeding for approximately Rs 148 crore, as indicated in the company’s regulatory filings.

The acquisition was approved by the National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai Bench, on November 2, 2023, under the relevant provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, following IOC’s resolution plan submission for the purchase of a 100 % stake in Mercator Petroleum Limited (MPL).

MPL possesses an on-land oil and gas exploration block situated in the Cambay Basin of Gujarat, known as block CB-ONN-2005/9. This block, secured by the company during the 7th NELP bid round in 2008, holds the potential for an oil discovery amounting to 45.5 million barrels of in-place reserves.

IOC’s Koyali refinery is conveniently located just 60 kilometers away from the block, and in November 2019, the company had entered into an agreement to purchase oil from this block. IOC plans to implement the Resolution Plan and fulfill the necessary regulatory requirements, including obtaining any required approvals, to ensure the successful execution of the Resolution Plan.

As per the resolution plan, IOC will make a payment of Rs 135 crore to secured financial creditors who had admitted claims of Rs 291 crore. No provision has been made for unsecured financial creditors, who had admitted claims of Rs 118 crore. Operational creditors are offered Rs 5.40 crore in the resolution plan against their total admitted claims of Rs 73 crore.

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