The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has rejected the oil ministry’s plea seeking $314 million (around Rs 2,245 crore) from insolvency-bound Videocon Industries in unpaid profit petroleum from the Ravva oil and gas fields in the eastern offshore.
The ministry had on October 22 last year sent Videocon a demand notice for payment of Government’s share of profit petroleum, which is calculated after all capital and operating cost is deducted from the sale of oil and gas.
Videocon, which holds 25 per cent stake in Ravva oil and gas fields, had been admitted to insolvency and the resolution professional (RP) overseeing the process approached the Mumbai-bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) against the demand saying the company cannot be asked to part with any money, including share of profit, during the moratorium period.
NCLT upheld the RP’s plea, which was challenged before the NCLAT.
A three-member NCLAT bench headed by chairperson Justice S J Mukhopadhaya also upheld the same and said that the petroleum ministry could not recover these proceeds during the moratorium period from Videocon Industries, against whom insolvency was initiated in June 2018.
