Our Corporate Bureau

Kolkata, April 11: VARUN Shipping Co Ltd promoters Dilip D Khatau plans to hike stake in case the minority shareholders refuse to subscribe to the Rs 36.26 crore rights issue. The management on Wednesday held a press conference to announce its results in Kolkata and also speak on its rights issue which closes on April 18. On the fate of the rights issue, company vice-chairman and managing director Arun Mehta said that the promoters, who hold close to 36 per cent stake in the company, are committed and willing to hike their stake further, if required.

The rights issue will comprise of 14 per cent unsecured fully convertible debentures of Rs 10 each.
The company’s scrip was quoting at Rs 14 on the Bombay Stock Exchange with a Rs 17 and Rs 9
as the 52-week high and low respectively. Despite the fact that the 1:1 rights issue being open for
five weeks now since March 5 and slated to close in another week, the company has no information on the fate of the issue.

However, the management continues to be confident. The Rs 36.26 crore rights issue has been underwritten to the extent of Rs 10 crore by Industrial Development Bank of India (Rs 5 crore), BOB Capital Markets Ltd (Rs 1.50 crore), UTI Securities Exchange Ltd (Rs 1.50 crore) and United Bank of India (Rs 2 crore).

In addition to this, shareholders IFC Washington, ICICI and UTI have given in writing that they will pick up their portion of the rights issue.