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News Topical, Digital Desk : Once valued at ₹24,000 crore, India's largest offshore drilling company is now on the verge of collapse. A rig accident, mounting debt, the oil crash, and the COVID-19 pandemic have decimated the company, sending its stock price plummeting from ₹5,000 to just ₹30. Now, the company is providing another significant update to the exchange: it has officially entered the NCLT's IBC process, and creditors will determine its future. Currently, promoters hold a 46% stake in the company, with 19.37% of the total pledged. FII and DII holdings remain negligible. However, public shareholding has risen to 47.4%. This data is valid until September 2025.
How this giant worth ₹24,000 crores collapsed - the whole story... let's know... This is the case of Aban Offshore Company. Year 2007–08: The value was ₹24,000 crores and the stock was also at its peak, but suddenly the whole game changed. During this period, the company bought Norway's Sinvest for ₹10,400 crores, in which a loan of more than ₹6,400 crores was taken, this high-leverage deal proved to be a back-breaker for the company in the future.
In the year 2010, the accident that changed the story - the rig sank, revenue went down by 10–12%. The Aban Pearl rig in Venezuela sank due to operational/safety failure. This was a blow from which the company could never recover. There is a loss of revenue of approximately ₹800-900 crores, a major client like PDVSA was lost. The shares fell by 35% and from here the market confidence started to shake. 2014–16: The oil crash completely gripped the debt-ridden company.
Crude oil fell from $100 to $35/barrel – that is, a 65% decline. Result- -Debt rates crash -New contracts stopped -Order book weakened -Revenue collapsed This blow was very heavy for Aban, which was running on a high-debt model. 2020: Covid – Revenue almost 'zero' During Covid, offshore drilling almost stopped. The company had no work, no income – and the debt kept increasing. Debt servicing had become impossible. Picture and black by the year 2025 - Debt of ₹14,880 crore, net worth negative The total debt of Aban Offshore increased to ₹14,880 crore. Auditors also raised questions on 'going concern'. All attempts to sell the rigs failed.
1- Huge mistake of high-leveraged deal Sinvest deal led to a debt of ₹6,400 crore.
2- Rig accident - Turning point of the company The sinking of Aban Pearl proved to be the biggest mistake of the company.
3- No backup of the cyclicality of the industry Oil crash + Covid = almost finished revenue.
4- Debt restructuring failed Settlement of ₹121 crore and attempt to sell 7 rigs also failed.
5- Management and governance crisis Resignation of directors, postponed till AGM - system broke down. An accident, wrong financial decisions, the oil market crash, and the shock of Covid—all of these combined to bring down a ₹24,000 crore drilling giant to ₹30 a share. Now, the next chapter will be written at the NCLT and creditors' table. The company's crucial meeting is scheduled for December 12, 2025. Big news on the exchange: NCLT's second CoC meeting scheduled. The company has informed the exchange that it is formally in the IBC process.
The second CoC meeting will be held on December 12, 2025 (4 pm) at Raheja Centre, Nariman Point, Mumbai, in physical + video conference mode. This committee of creditors will decide whether the company will be bought, revived, or go straight into liquidation.
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