State-owned Engineers India (EIL) on Friday announced that it will sell part of the government’s stake to its eligible employees, as part of its approved disinvestment plan.

“The government has offered 16.84 lakh shares of face value ₹5 each to eligible employees,” it said in a regulatory filing to the BSE, adding that the offer-for-sale (OFS) will remain open between September 15 and 23.

The shares will be offered at ₹187.29 each, which is at a 5 per cent discount on the cut-off price of ₹197.15 a piece that was discovered in the offer-for-sale in January this year. On Friday, EIL’s price fell 2.11 per cent to end at ₹264.95 apiece on the BSE. The Union Government owns 59.37 per cent stake in the State-owned firm, which provides engineering consultancy and EPC services.

Earlier stake-sale While the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs had in May 2015 approved disinvestment of EIL, the government finally sold about 10 per cent of its stake in the public sector firm in January this year.

The offer-for-sale of over 3.36 crore shares drew response from both institutional and retail investors, generating demand for over 8.56 crore shares and helped the government raise ₹640 crore.

The funds from the share sale to employees is also expected to go to the government kitty.

Earlier in July this year, State-owned NTPC had undertaken a similar exercise and helped the Centre mobilise ₹203.78 crore. The offer of 2.06 crore shares had, however, received a lukewarm response with just 50 per cent of the eligible employees participating in it.

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