The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the proposal for closure of the Biecco Lawrie Limited (BLL) including giving Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS)/ Voluntary Separation Scheme (VSS) to the employees of the Company.

The idling assets of BLL will be subsequently put into productive use after meeting all the liabilities in accordance with the extant guidelines of the Government.

Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has taken various steps for revival of the Company from time to time. However, the Company could not be revived and further, there appeared no possibility of revival of the Company considering the competitive business environment as well as huge capital requirement. Continued loss has made further operations of the company not only unviable but also resulted in substantial distress to officials and staff due to uncertain future.

Background:

BLL is a Schedule ‘C’ Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) with 67.33% and 32.33% equity share held by Oil Industry Development Board (OIDB) and Government of India respectively. The remaining 0.44% shares are held by others.

The Company, having its registered Office and Headquarters at Kolkata, West Bengal operates in four business segments: Switchgear Manufacturing, Electrical Repair, Projects Division and Lube blending & filling facility.

The Company has consistently been under financial stress and has had performance-related issues. It has been making losses for the last several years. BLL’s accumulated losses had become more than the equity and the net worth had become negative. The Net worth of the Company stood  ₹ (-) 78.88 crore at the end of the FY 2017-18 and accumulated loss as on 31.03.2018 was  ₹ (-) 153.95 crore.

Closure of public sector company authorises VRS/VSS for staff and asset reuse after liabilities are discharged. Approval for closure of Biecco Lawrie Limited includes provision of Voluntary Retirement/Voluntary Separation Scheme for employees; assets to be put to productive use after meeting liabilities in accordance with government guidelines. The decision follows unsuccessful revival efforts, persistent losses, negative net worth, and recognition that further operation is unviable due to competitive environment and significant capital requirements.