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DoP floats tender to appoint consultant for valuation of BPCL
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Gireesh Babu, New Delhi
May 20 , 2023
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The Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) is initiating processes for valuation of the assets of Bengal Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd (BCPL) - a public sector undertaking which has shown resilience to overcome its financial troubles to turn around to profit - as part of the Central government’s divestment plans.
The DoP has invited tenders from eligible agencies to engage as consultant for valuation of the Kolkata-based BCPL, which is engaged in the business of industrial chemicals (ferric alum), drugs & pharmaceuticals, and disinfectants such as phenol, naphthalene balls, bleaching powder, toilet cleaners, and floor cleaners and its reputed brand cantharidine hair oil.
“The broad scope of work for the consultant is to carry out the valuation of BCPL along with various sensitivity scenarios and develop a detailed financial model to determine the valuation of the company including various cash flows, financial and operational sensitivities, etc,” said DoP while inviting the tender.
The successful bidder may determine and recommend a valuation for BCPL on a consolidated basis on an as-is-basis one year forward and 24 months forward basis. The draft valuation report should comprise brief industry scenarios, financial analysis, valuation summary and other information.
BCPL will provide the details of the properties and other documents for completing the tasks by the consultant as per the prescribed time. Time schedule: The contract will be effective from the date of issue of award of letter for 15 days, it added.
Founded in 1901 by Acharya Prafulla Chandra Roy, a renowned scientist and academician, the company was taken over by the Government of India. It was nationalised in 1980 and registered as Bengal Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Limited under the Companies Act in1981.
The company was declared sick in 1992 and was referred to the erstwhile Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR), which sanctioned the scheme for revival in 1995. The company reported a turnaround and has been making profit for the last seven years.
The DoP said that the revival package for BCPL was approved by the government in December 2006. The package of Rs. 440.60 crore was approved which comprised restructuring of existing debts on the books of BCPL, capital investments, support for the development of marketing infrastructure and promotional measures, grant for wage revision and implementation of voluntary retirement scheme and funds for payment of non-Government dues.
Even after restructuring the company in 2006, it was running in losses and its operational performance had come down drastically to Rs. 17 crore turnover in 2013-14, which was the lowest ever turnover since its inception as Government of India Company, and reported a net loss of Rs 36.55 crore in 2013-14.
“However, from the financial year 2016-17 onwards, the company turned around and reported a net profit of Rs. 4.51 crore during the year and years following thereafter. Thus, BCPL reported a net profit of Rs. 10.06 crore in 2017-18, Rs. 25.26 crore in 2018-19, Rs. 13.07 crore in 2019-20, Rs. 6.08 crore in 2020-21 and Rs. 7.47 crore in 2021-22,” said DoP in its Annual Report for the year 2022-23.
The company repaid the entire bank loan of Rs. 28 crore to United Bank of India which was taken in 1983 by mortgaging the registered office building and now BCPL is a debt free company, it added.
After repayment of Government of India loans of Rs. 23.73 crore as on March 31, 2021, there was a balance in plan loan and non-plan loan including accrued interest amounting to Rs. 193.71 crore. The Central government through an order on September 9, 2021 waived of Government of India Loans along with accrued interest amounting to Rs. 193.71 crore against the transfer of physically available 19.78 acres of surplus land at Panihati factory to NIPER, Kolkata.
“The Government of India Loan is Nil as on March 32, 2022,” it added. The company’s performance improved during the Covid-19 pandemic, with the market for cleaning and hygiene products went up during the period. It launched its hand sanitizer “Bensani+” in August, 2020, during Covid-19 pandemic.
During the pandemic, BCPL touched an all-time record of manufacturing 60,680 bottles of phenol 450ml. in a single day on September 26, 2020 as against an average daily production of 30,000 bottles.
At present, BCPL has four factories one each at Maniktala (Kolkata) and Panihati in West Bengal, Mumbai and Kanpur. The Maniktala Unit was set up in 1905 and primarily produces pharmaceutical formulations which include branded as well as unbranded generic medicines. DoP said that the commercial production in tablet, capsule, ointment and cosmetics sections is going on full-fledged. Maniktala Unit of BCPL also produces cantharidine hair oil.
Panihati unit, set up in 1920, is located in North-24 Parganas, West Bengal and it primarily produces industrial chemicals and disinfectants such as phenol, naphthalene balls, bleaching powder, toilet cleaners, and floor cleaners.
The Mumbai unit was set up in 1938 and further the commercial space developed has been leased out to third parties for the generation of additional sources of revenue. The Kanpur Unit, set up in 1949, primarily produces tablets for acute disorders, it added.
“The company has retained its brand position in home products/disinfectants even during the crisis period and is well set to capitalize on these brands now,” said DoP in its Annual Report.
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