New Delhi, Nov. 3: The government has identified more state-run companies which would be brought to the market when the conditions favour the issue of share capital.

“We are aiming at stake sales in public-sector undertakings that have less than 10 per cent public holding … a few more PSUs have been identified for divestment,” finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said at conference of economic editors here.

The government favoured identifying profitable PSUs which had not been listed. Officials said the government was considering a 10 per cent sale in MMTC, 8.38 per cent in NMDC and 5 per cent in NTPC. The sale of government holding in these state-owned firms alone could fetch over Rs 35,000 crore.

The government holds 99.33 per cent of MMTC. The proposed divestment of 8.38 per cent will reduce its holding of 98.38 per cent to 90 per cent. After a sale of 5 per cent, the government’s holding in NTPC will come down to 85 per cent.

“As and when I find the market favourable and I can get good money, I will go for divestment. I am not going to list out the number of PSUs (for divestment), indicate the percentage of shares that would be offloaded in the market over a particular period of time. These things we are not going to tell,” Mukherjee said.

The finance ministry has long felt that listing PSUs helped them to turn more transparent in their functioning and unlock the market value of their capital. Mukherjee said post-listing, the market capitalisation of NHPC had increased 106 per cent from Rs 18,280 crore to Rs 37,702 crore, and that of Oil India’s by 177 per cent from Rs 9,844 crore to Rs 27,220 crore. The value of the government’s residual holding has increased 78 per cent in NHPC and 121 per cent in OIL, after accounting for the sale of 5 per cent of NHPC and 10 per cent of OIL.

The government has approved the sale of its stake and the infusion of fresh equity in Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam and the Rural Electrification Corporation.

The Manmohan Singh government planned to raise Rs 10,000 crore in a year through stake sales in public sector companies, which was more than what the UPA had mopped up in its previous tenure, when it had to face the roadblocks of the Left parties.