Essar Oil Limited was delisted from BSE and NSE in 2016, renamed to Nayara Energy, and taken private. If you missed the open offer or still hold old share certificates, your shares are now in an unlisted private company — and your exit options are limited. This guide explains exactly what happened and what you can do.
By RK Gupta, Company Secretary · Updated June 2026 · 11 min read
Essar Oil Limited was incorporated in 1989 and was for many years one of India's largest private sector refiners. Its Vadinar refinery in Khambhalia, Gujarat — with a capacity of approximately 20 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) — was among the largest and most sophisticated in Asia. The company was listed on both BSE and NSE, and retail investors across India held its shares.
In August 2016, Essar Oil's promoters (Essar Group) announced a voluntary delisting through an open offer. The acquirer was a consortium led by Rosneft PJSC (the Russian state oil company), which partnered with Trafigura (commodity trading firm) and UCP Investment Group to acquire approximately 98 percent of Essar Oil through the delisting process.
The SEBI-regulated delisting process set the exit price at ₹262.80 per share. Shareholders who tendered their shares in the reverse book building process received this price. Those who did not tender — either because they missed the deadline, were unaware of the process, or chose not to — retained their shares. But after the delisting was completed in October 2016, the company ceased to be listed on any stock exchange.
The company was subsequently renamed Nayara Energy Limited in 2017. It continues to operate the Vadinar refinery and has since expanded into petroleum retail (fuel stations across India), renewable energy, and petrochemicals. But it is a private company — and that creates a fundamental problem for small shareholders.
As of 2025, Nayara Energy's ownership structure is approximately:
The company operates under the Nayara Energy brand, runs over 6,500 retail fuel outlets across India, and continues to process crude oil at the Vadinar refinery — one of the few fully integrated complex refineries in Asia. The business is economically significant, but it is not listed. Small shareholders who held Essar Oil shares before delisting are now co-owners of this private company, with no liquid market to exit through.
If you held Essar Oil shares before October 2016:
Your name remains in the Nayara Energy share register. Your folio number from the Essar Oil days should still be traceable through the RTA. The share certificates you hold are legally valid instruments representing shares in Nayara Energy Limited (the renamed entity).
The core problem: Nayara Energy is unlisted, so there is no exchange platform to sell your shares. You cannot call your broker and place a sell order. The stock does not exist on NSE or BSE. Your shares are illiquid.
Link Intime India Private Limited (now MUFG Intime India Private Limited) was the RTA for Essar Oil Limited. For Nayara Energy as a private company, investor services may now be handled directly by the company or through a designated RTA. Since it is a private company, SEBI's regulations on listed company RTA services do not strictly apply in the same way.
To find the current RTA or investor relations contact for Nayara Energy:
Investor Helpdesk recommends verifying the current RTA directly with the company before dispatching any documents, since the servicing arrangements for private companies are less standardised than for listed companies.
If you hold old Essar Oil share certificates dated before October 2016, they technically represent shares in Nayara Energy Limited — since Essar Oil was renamed after the delisting. The certificates themselves have not been updated (they still say "Essar Oil Limited") but the underlying legal entity is now Nayara Energy Limited.
Regarding dematerialisation: for a private unlisted company, the ISIN situation is more complex. Private companies are not required to mandatorily maintain active ISIN connectivity with NSDL or CDSL in the same way listed companies are. You should contact the company's registrar directly to understand whether dematerialisation is possible for your Nayara Energy shares and whether an ISIN is currently active for demat purposes.
One important clarification: even if you do manage to demat your shares into electronic form, they remain shares of an unlisted company. Demat does not create a market — it just changes the form of holding. You still cannot sell them on NSE or BSE.
Nayara Energy as a private company may declare dividends at its discretion. Since it is not listed, there is no mandatory quarterly results disclosure and no SEBI obligation to announce dividends publicly. Check the company's investor relations page or contact the Company Secretary at the registered office to find out:
Essar Oil Limited declared dividends in various years before the delisting. Any dividends unclaimed for 7 consecutive years from the date of declaration would have been transferred to IEPF (Investor Education and Protection Fund).
Since Essar Oil delisted in 2016, dividends from around 2008–2010 would have been eligible for IEPF transfer by approximately 2015–2017.
To check whether old Essar Oil dividends are with IEPF:
The IEPF Nodal Officer for Essar Oil / Nayara Energy matters would be at the Mumbai registered office. This is a separate process from the general shareholder services — you cannot claim IEPF assets through the RTA alone.
The reality is that the options available to you are limited. Here is an honest account of each one.
Nayara Energy has periodically been discussed as a potential IPO candidate, given the size and profitability of the Vadinar refinery. As of mid-2026, no confirmed IPO date or DRHP has been filed with SEBI. If a public listing happens, your shares would become tradeable on the exchange. This is uncertain and has no guaranteed timeline.
If Rosneft or another existing shareholder decides to increase their stake, they may launch another open offer. This would give minority shareholders a chance to exit at a regulated price. No such offer has been announced as of June 2026.
You can theoretically sell your shares through an off-market transfer — directly to a willing buyer who is prepared to take on shares in an unlisted company. Off-market transfers for unlisted companies involve physical transfer of share certificates and execution of a share transfer deed (SH-4 form) or digital transfer if the shares are in demat form. Pricing is purely negotiable. Finding a willing buyer at a fair price is the main challenge.
You can simply hold on, receive dividends if declared, and wait for a liquidity event (IPO, open offer, or buyback). Given the value of the Vadinar asset, shares in Nayara Energy are not without underlying business value — but turning that into cash depends on when and whether the company chooses to provide an exit.
If the original Essar Oil / Nayara Energy shareholder has passed away, transmission of shares to legal heirs is possible even for private unlisted companies. The process is similar to listed companies:
Contact the company's investor relations / Company Secretary's office to obtain the specific forms and address. The transmitted shares will remain illiquid but the legal heir becomes the registered owner — which is important for when liquidity eventually arrives.
Shareholders of delisted companies are a specific target for fraudsters. The typical scam works like this: you receive an unsolicited call or message claiming that Nayara Energy is conducting a special buyback or re-listing, and that you can participate if you pay a "processing fee," "tax clearance fee," or "SEBI compliance fee" in advance. After you pay, they either disappear or ask for more money.
No legitimate buyback, open offer, or IPO requires you to pay any advance fee. SEBI-regulated open offers and buybacks operate through the stock exchange mechanism — you tender shares through your broker, not by paying cash to a third party.
Warning signs:
If you receive such contact, do not pay anything. Report to the Cyber Crime portal (cybercrime.gov.in) and SEBI's SCORES portal. Verify all corporate actions directly on nayaraenergy.com or through official SEBI/NSE/BSE announcement platforms.
If you hold Essar Oil or Nayara Energy shares and are unsure of your position:
Questions Indian investors ask about Essar Oil and Nayara Energy shares
Yes. Essar Oil Limited was delisted from BSE and NSE in October 2016 after an open offer by a consortium led by Rosneft. After delisting, the company was renamed Nayara Energy Limited in 2017. The underlying business — the Vadinar refinery in Gujarat and now a national fuel retail network — remains the same. If you held Essar Oil shares and did not tender them in the 2016 open offer, you now hold shares in Nayara Energy Limited, a private unlisted company.
No. Essar Oil was delisted from BSE and NSE in October 2016. Nayara Energy Limited, the renamed entity, is a private company and not listed on any stock exchange as of June 2026. This means you cannot sell through a broker on the exchange. Your shares are illiquid. Possible exit routes include an off-market transfer to a willing buyer, a future open offer by existing shareholders, or an IPO — none of which have been confirmed as of the time of writing.
If you missed the Essar Oil delisting open offer in 2016 (exit price ₹262.80 per share), your shares were not purchased and you remain a shareholder of the company now called Nayara Energy Limited. Your realistic options today are: (a) wait for a future IPO or open offer, (b) arrange an off-market transfer to a willing buyer, (c) hold and receive dividends if declared. There is no "undo" on the missed open offer — that window closed permanently in 2016. Investor Helpdesk can assist with ensuring your folio is updated and transmission is complete if needed.
Possibly, if you held Essar Oil shares before the delisting and had unpaid dividends from 7+ years ago. Dividends unclaimed for 7 consecutive years are transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF). Check iepf.gov.in by searching under the company name "Essar Oil Limited." If your name appears, you will need to file Form IEPF-5 on the MCA portal and submit physical documents to the IEPF Nodal Officer at Nayara Energy / Essar Oil's registered office.
Almost certainly not. Advance-fee scams targeting shareholders of delisted companies are extremely common in India. Fraudsters claim to represent a buyback, re-listing, or special share purchase scheme and ask for an upfront "processing fee," "SEBI compliance fee," or "tax clearance." Once you pay, they disappear or demand more. No legitimate open offer or buyback requires advance payment from shareholders. SEBI-regulated buybacks are conducted through the stock exchange — you get paid, not the other way around. Verify all Nayara Energy corporate actions only on the official nayaraenergy.com website. Report suspicious calls to cybercrime.gov.in.
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Confidential · Free · No obligation · Rajendra Kumar Gupta, ICSI Fellow Member
