New Delhi: Sources privy to the development said security clearance of all bidders before placing the financial bid or simultaneously with the price bids has been made mandatory to weed out unwanted entities and allow only companies or consortiums passing muster, to qualify in the process.
Also, such process would prevent delays in the event a winning candidate fails to get security clearance. In such a scenario, the next best candidate with proper security clearance could be declared the winner if it matches the bid of the disqualified winning candidate.
“Normally, security clearance process follows financial bidding stage after an entity is declared winner on the basis of its price bid. However, for BPCL strategic sale, extra care is being taken to ensure that process is not derailed after an entity is declared winner and company’s valuations comes out in public domain. Earnings from BPCL privatisation would be key to government achieving ambitious disinvestment target of Rs 2.1 lakh crore this year,” said a government official privy to the development.
The queries generated to BPCL preliminary information memorandum (PIM) has seen clarity being sought by prospective bidders over the security clearance process. In its latest clarification issued last week, DIPAM has also said interested parties may have to obtain security clearances while submitting their price bids.
The issue of security clearance privatisation of a company in the strategic energy sector was also discussed in a late last month meeting of the core group of secretaries on disinvestment.
