BackSatyam to declare long-term plan next week: Karnik
Satyam to declare long-term plan next week: Karnik
PremiumNew Delhi: The board of fraud-hit Satyam Computer Services Ltd will decide on a long-term action plan, including a possible sale, in the next 7 to 10 days, its chairman said on Monday.
Kiran Karnik, who was last week appointed by the government as the chairman of the Satyam board, told Reuters a clear picture would be available by the middle of next week.
Satyam has been battling for survival after founder and former chairman Ramalinga Raju disclosed last month that profits had been overstated for years in the country’s biggest corporate scandal.
The fund-starved outsourcer firm, whose clients include General Electric and Coca Cola, has borrowed Rs600 crore ($123 million) from banks to meet short-term capital needs.
“Now the short-term crisis has been taken care of. Once the fire-fighting is over, everybody is curious to know where things are moving," Karnik said.
“We will chart out a long-term roadmap in the next 7 to 10 days and make a recommendation to the government that may include all possibilities. The government has to decide."
Top engineering firm Larsen & Toubro controls about 12% of Satyam and has not ruled out raising its stake, while diversified Indian business houses Spice Group and Hinduja Group have also shown interest.
The board has appointed Goldman Sachs and another Indian investment bank to find a strategic bidder for the company.
The Economic Times newspaper said earlier on Monday Satyam would trim its sales staff in overseas locations to help cut costs and to repay debts to creditors, but Karnik said they were not in a hurry to shed workforce.
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