Haldia Petrochem board rejects conversion of loan into equity
Chairman Partha Chatterjee says lenders will have to wait for up to eight months for the conversion
Kolkata: The management of Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL), led by the West Bengal government, turned down lenders’ demand for conversion of a part of their ₹ 4,000 crore loans to the company into equity.
Partha Chatterjee, the firm’s chairman and the state’s commerce and industries minister, said on Friday after a meeting of HPL’s board that lenders would have to wait for up to eight months for the conversion.
The state, according to Chatterjee, expects to conclude the sale of its 40% stake in the firm by 30 June. Lenders will be able to get a better deal on the conversion of shares if they wait till the sale of West Bengal’s stake in HPL, he said.
With losses mounting and the company fast running out of working capital, HPL’s board again appealed to banks for a loan of ₹ 1,000 crore. The response to the request wasn’t immediately known.
Banks have in the past year refused to lend to the firm unless its promoters—the West Bengal government and The Chatterjee Group—infused funds into its operations.
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