Calcutta, June 12: Philips Electronics India Ltd will launch a fresh buyback offer for its minority shareholders to give them another opportunity to exit the company.

Philips came out with a buyback offer last year, but the scheme was unsuccessful.

After the buyback, Philips India will become a wholly owned subsidiary of promoter company Koninklijke Philips Electronics. The parent holds 96.36 per cent in Philips.

The board has earmarked Rs 145.8 crore to buy back the shares at a price of Rs 242 a piece. The valuation has been done by Deloitte.

“The funds required for the buyback will be met out of the free reserves of the company,” managing director Murali Sivaraman said at the annual general meeting today.

“If the minority shareholders do not accept the buyback offer this year, we may not be able to come out with another scheme next year. The company’s reserves in hand could be used in other development programmes,” he said.

The buyback size represents 17.2 per cent of the paid-up capital and free reserves of Philips as on December 31, 2008. The number of shares to be bought back is 6,023,070,. or 9.2 per cent of the outstanding fully paid-up shares as on January 1, 2009, the company’s annual report said.