Interest from Malaysia's Petronas in Cairn India and Swiss Petroplus in Cairn India's parent, Cairn Energy, saw the shares of both the companies gaining on the bourses.
Petronas, which already owns 10 per cent of Cairn India through a pre-IPO placement, was now looking to buy out Cairn Energy's 69 per cent stake in Cairn India, sources said. The takeover talks pushed Cairn's share price on the BSE to Rs 144.30 on Friday, up 2.3 per cent on Thursday's close of Rs 139.85.
This was 4.85 per cent higher than the Wednesday's close of Rs 134.05. At the current price of Rs 144.30 a share, Cairn Energy's 69 per cent stake would be worth around Rs 17,700 crore (Rs 177 billion). When contacted, Cairn spokesperson David Nisbet said that the company did not comment on market rumours. Petronas did not reply to an email.
Meanwhile, Finacial Times report that Swiss refiner Petroplus is planning a bid for Cairn Energy, sent the Cairn Energy stock higher by 3.5 per cent to £17.93 a share on the London Stock Exchange on Friday.
Following the news, Citigroup changed its status on both Cairn Energy and Cairn India to "buy". The research group revised the price target for the Cairn stock from Rs 145 to Rs 185.
