Cairn Energy Plc prices India arm IPO floatation at Rs 160

Mumbai, Dec 18 (UNI) Cairn Energy PLC has announced the pricing for the floatation of its Indian business, Cairn India Ltd on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE).

Consequent to a book building exercise, based on an offering document, Cairn has agreed to set an offer price for the floatation of Rs 160 per Cairn India share, a company's press release said.

This implies a Cairn India market capitalisation (including roughly US$ 600 million of the gross proceeds to be retained by Cairn India) at roughly Rs 28,245 crore (or approximately US$ 6.32 billion) excluding any exercise of the over-allotment option.

The floatation will involve the issue of approximately 538.47 million Cairn India shares, excluding any exercise of the over-allotment option, comprising approximately 209.67 million shares priced at Rs 160 per share pursuant to the pre-floatation placement, and approximately 328.80 million shares priced at Rs 160 per share pursuant to the offer to the public (excluding any exercise of the over-allotment option).

Following the floatation, Cairn will own a 69.5 per cent holding in Cairn India (excluding any exercise of the over-allotment option). Based on the price above, gross proceeds of the floatation (excluding any exercise of the over-allotment option) would be Rs 8616 crore (US$ 1.93 billion).

After taking into account the proportion of the gross proceeds to be retained by Cairn India, expected to be approximately Rs 2681 crore (US$ 600 million), the gross proceeds expected to be received by Cairn (excluding any exercise of the over-allotment option) would be approximately Rs 5935 crore (US$ 1.33 billion).

A final offering document (the ''Prospectus'') is expected to be published on 19 December 2006. Allotment of Cairn India shares is expected to take place on December 29, 2006 with trading of Cairn India shares expected to commence in early January 2007.

Further announcements relating to the Prospectus, allotment and commencement of trading of Cairn India shares will be made in due course.

ABN AMRO Rothschild and Merrill Lynch are acting as joint global coordinators and bookrunners and Morgan Stanley as bookrunner in relation to the floatation.

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