Hindustan Copper: Government Sells 6% via OFS at a ₹514 Floor, Stake Falls to ~60%; QIP of Up to 9.7 Cr Shares Approved

The President of India, acting through the Ministry of Mines, gave notice on the evening of August 24 of an offer for sale of 2,90,10,721 shares (3.00% of paid-up equity) on August 25 for non-retail investors and August 26 for retail, with an option to sell a further 2,90,10,721 shares. The floor price was ₹514 against a prior close of ₹574.15. On August 25 the seller exercised the oversubscription option, taking the offer to 5,80,21,442 shares, 6.00% of the company. A separate 25,000 shares were set aside for employees.

At prices between the floor and the day's trading range, 5.80 crore shares is close to ₹3,000 crore — the figure the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management used publicly. The government's holding falls from roughly 66% to roughly 60%; it remains the promoter with a clear majority. Exact post-offer holdings will show in the September quarter shareholding pattern.

On August 27 the company gave prior intimation of two special resolutions for the AGM on September 23: a qualified institutional placement of up to 9,69,76,680 equity shares in one or more tranches, to fund capex and expansion plans approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, and non-convertible debentures of up to ₹500 crore on private placement. The QIP figure is a share count, not a rupee amount: 9.70 crore shares against 96.70 crore outstanding is about 10% dilution, which at the current price would raise in the region of ₹5,000 crore if fully placed. Terms and timing are not yet set.

Separately, on August 26 the company disclosed a fine imposed by BSE and NSE for non-compliance with corporate-governance norms under the listing regulations. The filing does not change the offer or the QIP, but it is part of the record for the same week.

Hindustan Copper is the only integrated copper mining company in India, with mines at Malanjkhand (Madhya Pradesh), Khetri (Rajasthan) and the Indian Copper Complex at Ghatsila (Jharkhand), a plant at Taloja (Maharashtra) and the Gujarat Copper Project. Its output is mostly copper concentrate; refined copper in India is produced largely by private smelters working on imported concentrate. The company's FY26 sustainability report puts copper concentrate and related products at essentially all of its turnover.