Calcutta, Dec. 26: Shares of Indraprastha Gas, the sole compressed natural gas (CNG) provider in Delhi, surged 149 per cent on listing today.

The stock closed at Rs 119.40 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), Rs 71.40 higher than its issue price. On the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the stock closed at Rs 119.20.

This was the biggest gain on debut in the last few years and one of the biggest ever historically, according to primary market analyst Prithvi Haldea.

On the BSE, the stock debuted at Rs 110, whereas on the NSE, it opened at Rs 92. The stock soared to a high of Rs 125 before consolidating at the Rs 120-level.

Indraprastha Gas recorded a total trading volume of 2.96 crore shares on the two bourses today. This was 74 per cent of the shares in trade. The company issued 4 crore shares in the public offering at Rs 48-a-share. The issue was subscribed 35 times.

Indraprastha Gas’ management was overwhelmed with the response. “We had expected it to touch Rs 100, but the surge we witnessed today was beyond everyone’s imagination,” said A. K. De, managing director.

Retail investors, however, are disappointed with the allotment. Half of the issue went to retail investors, and the other half, to institutions. The allotment was widely expected to be skewed in favour of retail investors.

“Shares were allotted to one in 30 applicants for 100 shares and one in three applicants for 1,000 shares. Even those who had bid for 10,000 shares received 100. That’s disappointing because there was greater demand from among retail investors,” said an analyst. FIIs and mutual funds cornered 83.21 lakh and 89 lakh shares respectively.