Coal India OFS: 8.14x Day-1, green shoe; retail May 29

Strong day-one demand pushes oversubscription past 8x

The government’s offer-for-sale (OFS) in Coal India Ltd drew heavy institutional interest on the first day, leading the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) to exercise the full green shoe option. The issue was oversubscribed 8.14 times on Wednesday, as per DIPAM Secretary Arunish Chawla’s post on X.

Exchange data cited in the report showed bids worth about ₹19,000 crore on day one, reflecting strong participation from non-retail investors. The response came at prices above the floor price set for the OFS.

What DIPAM said and how allocation will work

Arunish Chawla said the OFS received an “enthusiastic response” from investors and that allocation will be done on a price priority basis. He also said the government has decided to exercise the entire green shoe option.

The statement indicates that the additional shares available under the oversubscription mechanism will be sold, increasing the overall number of shares the government will offload through this transaction.

Offer size rises after full green shoe exercise

The OFS included a green shoe option of 1%. The company’s filing stated that the government had the option to additionally sell 61,627,283 equity shares under the oversubscription option.

The filing added that the government has exercised this oversubscription option “to the extent of 61,627,283 Equity Shares”. With the full green shoe exercised, the total offer size now stands at 123,254,566 equity shares, representing 2% of Coal India’s total paid-up equity share capital.

Institutional book drives day-one subscription

Non-retail or institutional investors subscribed to more than 45.15 crore shares, which is over eight times the shares reserved for them. The indicative price mentioned in the report for these bids was ₹436.69 per share, described as much higher than the set floor price.

At this indicative price, the total value of bids was around ₹19,000 crore. The subscription figure of 8.14 times for day one was also reiterated in multiple updates cited in the article.

Retail and employee bidding date and reserved portion

Retail investors and employees are scheduled to bid on Friday, 29 May 2026, as stated by the DIPAM Secretary. The filing also specified the retail allocation: 12,325,458 equity shares, representing 10% of the offer, will be available for retail investors on day one, or 29 May, subject to receipt of valid bids.

This sequencing is typical for OFS structures where non-retail bidding happens first, followed by retail participation on the subsequent day.

Key prices: floor price, indicative price, and green shoe cut-off

The government set a floor price of ₹412 per share for the OFS. The report noted this floor price was fixed at about a 10% discount to Coal India’s Tuesday closing price of ₹458.25 on the BSE.

On Wednesday, Coal India shares closed at ₹462.90 on the BSE, up 1.01% from the previous close. Separately, the report stated that the green shoe cut-off price is ₹447.05, referring to the pricing associated with the additional shares that can be sold if there is excess demand.

Snapshot table: what the article confirms

Why the government exercised the green shoe

A full green shoe exercise typically signals demand well beyond the base offer size, enabling the seller to increase the number of shares sold. In this case, the article explicitly links the decision to the strong day-one investor response.

The report also notes that Arunish Chawla has been mandated to raise ₹80,000 crore through disinvestment and asset monetisation in FY27. While the article does not quantify expected proceeds from this specific OFS after the green shoe, it states the structure and scale of shares being offered.

What to watch next for investors

The next key event is the retail and employee bidding window on 29 May 2026. DIPAM has also stated that allocation will be on a price priority basis, which makes the final bid prices and demand distribution important for how shares are allotted.

This OFS is described as the second OFS by the government in the current financial year. Any further updates would likely include final subscription data for the retail portion, the final clearing price, and the total amount raised.

Conclusion

Coal India’s OFS saw day-one subscription of 8.14 times, with institutional bids of about ₹19,000 crore, prompting the government to use the entire 1% green shoe option. The total offer size has risen to 123,254,566 shares, and retail investors and employees can bid on 29 May 2026.