Kolkata: Ambuja Cements Ltd has chalked out an investment plan of some Rs 2000 crore entailing enhancement of its cement capacities in Rajasthan and northern regions. The proposed project at Rajasthan would add five mil-lion tonne capacity to the company's total production.
"We are adding new capacities. We are actively pursuing the five million tonne capacity expansion in Rajasthan and neighbouring northern regions with an investment of Rs 2000 crore," Ajay Kapur, chief executive officer of Ambuja Cements. He, however, did not disclose any timeframe for the project.
He was here to announce the company's expansion plans at the 1.5 million tonne Sankrail plant in Howrah district. The Sankrail plant's expansion programme includes an investment of Rs 325 crore where the capacity would increase from its present capacity of 1.5 million tonne per annum to 2.4 million tonne cement per annum.
According to Kapur, the company controls 10 % of the overall Indian cement market currently. "We would like to sustain the same for the next five years," he said.
Meanwhile, Kapur said, the company would add 0.9 mt capacity to the existing plant Sankrail over the next two years.
Success in my Habit
Monday, December 31, 2012
Essel Group enters i-banking, PE space
Mumbai: The $4-billion Essel Group, a media conglomerate, has made a foray into the financial services sector.
The Subhash Chandra-owned group has set up a new arm, Essel Financial Services Ltd. It has brought in Amit Goenka, former national director, capital transactions, at advisory firm Knight Frank, as managing director and chief executive.
It has set up two businesses, private equity and investment banking, under the names of Essel Finance Managers and CAPSTAR, respectively, under the holding company, Essel Financial Services.
CAPSTAR, to focus on deals in infrastructure, real estate and financial services, has appointed about 15 people and set up an office each in Mumbai, Noida, Bangalore and Delhi. It is opening one each in Chennai and Pune. CAPSTAR will focus on mergers and acquisitions (M&As), pre-Initial Public Offering (IPO) deals, qualified institutional placements and portfolio management services. Abhinav Bhushan, former head of equities-capital transactions at Knight Frank India, will head CAPSTAR.
It is learnt that CAPSTAR has developed a pipeline of deals worth Rs 2,000 crore, with focus on project sales in infrastructure and real estate.
After covering the domestic markets, CAPSTAR also has plans for global expansion, with a plan to open offices in Singapore and London by 2013. Goenka said the company was not looking for joint ventures or alliances with global banks.
Apart from i-banking, the group is launching a private equity fund under Essel Finance Managers. It has appointed Sumit Kumar of Beekman Helix India to head it. The fund’s details are not known.
Goenka said, “CAPSTAR is a focused player, with ability to transact on mid-size to large deals in sectors such as real estate and financial services...We can also selectively invest in the deals where we advise.” He said the rationale behind Essel Group’s move was to leverage on the brand reach with investors, consumers and institutions.
The Essel Group has presence in media (Zee Entertainment, Zee News and DNA), technology (Dish TV, Wire & Wireless India), packaging (Essel Propack), entertainment (Playwin, Fun Multiplex), infrastructure (Essel Infraprojects, E-City Real Estate, Siti Energy) and education (Zee Learn).
Though India Inc saw a decline in M&A activity in 2012, the slight improvement in these deals in the third quarter brings hope for investment bankers. According to an Ernst & Young report, India’s M&A deal value for 2012 reached $31.4 billion, a slight decline from $36.6 bn in 2011. In deal count, 2012 recorded 809 as compared to 880 in 2011.
“The third quarter witnessed a strong surge in M&A activity and might be an indicator of the return of the market’s appetite for deal-making. This momentum is expected to continue in 2013. Indian companies, which played the waiting game in 2012, have accumulated huge cash piles,” says the report.
A perceived comeback of the IPO market by the end of 2012, with the listing of Bharti Infratel, had cheered i-bankers.
The Subhash Chandra-owned group has set up a new arm, Essel Financial Services Ltd. It has brought in Amit Goenka, former national director, capital transactions, at advisory firm Knight Frank, as managing director and chief executive.
It has set up two businesses, private equity and investment banking, under the names of Essel Finance Managers and CAPSTAR, respectively, under the holding company, Essel Financial Services.
CAPSTAR, to focus on deals in infrastructure, real estate and financial services, has appointed about 15 people and set up an office each in Mumbai, Noida, Bangalore and Delhi. It is opening one each in Chennai and Pune. CAPSTAR will focus on mergers and acquisitions (M&As), pre-Initial Public Offering (IPO) deals, qualified institutional placements and portfolio management services. Abhinav Bhushan, former head of equities-capital transactions at Knight Frank India, will head CAPSTAR.
It is learnt that CAPSTAR has developed a pipeline of deals worth Rs 2,000 crore, with focus on project sales in infrastructure and real estate.
After covering the domestic markets, CAPSTAR also has plans for global expansion, with a plan to open offices in Singapore and London by 2013. Goenka said the company was not looking for joint ventures or alliances with global banks.
Apart from i-banking, the group is launching a private equity fund under Essel Finance Managers. It has appointed Sumit Kumar of Beekman Helix India to head it. The fund’s details are not known.
Goenka said, “CAPSTAR is a focused player, with ability to transact on mid-size to large deals in sectors such as real estate and financial services...We can also selectively invest in the deals where we advise.” He said the rationale behind Essel Group’s move was to leverage on the brand reach with investors, consumers and institutions.
The Essel Group has presence in media (Zee Entertainment, Zee News and DNA), technology (Dish TV, Wire & Wireless India), packaging (Essel Propack), entertainment (Playwin, Fun Multiplex), infrastructure (Essel Infraprojects, E-City Real Estate, Siti Energy) and education (Zee Learn).
Though India Inc saw a decline in M&A activity in 2012, the slight improvement in these deals in the third quarter brings hope for investment bankers. According to an Ernst & Young report, India’s M&A deal value for 2012 reached $31.4 billion, a slight decline from $36.6 bn in 2011. In deal count, 2012 recorded 809 as compared to 880 in 2011.
“The third quarter witnessed a strong surge in M&A activity and might be an indicator of the return of the market’s appetite for deal-making. This momentum is expected to continue in 2013. Indian companies, which played the waiting game in 2012, have accumulated huge cash piles,” says the report.
A perceived comeback of the IPO market by the end of 2012, with the listing of Bharti Infratel, had cheered i-bankers.
Century Plyboards to set up unit in Myanmar
Kolkata: Century Plyboards (India) Ltd (CPIL) will commission its 25,000 sq metres a day plywood unit in March in Myanmar capital Yangon.
“We are setting up the unit on 11 acres in an industrial estate on a 30-year renewable lease. Work on putting up the units is currently on,” Sajjan Bhajanka, Managing Director, told Business Line here on Saturday.
Subsidiary Floated
The company has floated a Myanmar-incorporated wholly owned subsidiary - Century Plyboards Myanmar Ltd - for the export-oriented project, which is among a few from India.
The company will fund the Rs 30-crore project by its internal resources. CPIL has also secured raw material (1.8 cubic metre stumps) availability through a quota system as well as auctions.
“Our plan is to bring veneers or plywoods to India,” he said. This project is important for the company as it would replace its import of timber from Myanmar.
“Currently, we import around 35,000 Hopus tonnes of timber from the country. But this source would dry out in 2014 because of a pre-announced timber export ban by the Myanmar Government,” he explained.
In 2011-12, total imports from Myanmar to India, mostly forest and agriculture product, were worth $1,046 million. At present, six Indian companies have made investments in Myanmar and 70 others are looking to invest in the country.
Kandla Project
Century Plyboards, he said, hoped to achieve the financial closure for the proposed Greenfield project at Kandla in Gujarat next month. This project would also have a capacity of producing 25,000 sq metres of plywood a day and will cost Rs 50 crore. “Two thirds of the project cost will be financed by bank borrowings,” he added. CPIL has bought 20 acres for the project.
“We are setting up the unit on 11 acres in an industrial estate on a 30-year renewable lease. Work on putting up the units is currently on,” Sajjan Bhajanka, Managing Director, told Business Line here on Saturday.
Subsidiary Floated
The company has floated a Myanmar-incorporated wholly owned subsidiary - Century Plyboards Myanmar Ltd - for the export-oriented project, which is among a few from India.
The company will fund the Rs 30-crore project by its internal resources. CPIL has also secured raw material (1.8 cubic metre stumps) availability through a quota system as well as auctions.
“Our plan is to bring veneers or plywoods to India,” he said. This project is important for the company as it would replace its import of timber from Myanmar.
“Currently, we import around 35,000 Hopus tonnes of timber from the country. But this source would dry out in 2014 because of a pre-announced timber export ban by the Myanmar Government,” he explained.
In 2011-12, total imports from Myanmar to India, mostly forest and agriculture product, were worth $1,046 million. At present, six Indian companies have made investments in Myanmar and 70 others are looking to invest in the country.
Kandla Project
Century Plyboards, he said, hoped to achieve the financial closure for the proposed Greenfield project at Kandla in Gujarat next month. This project would also have a capacity of producing 25,000 sq metres of plywood a day and will cost Rs 50 crore. “Two thirds of the project cost will be financed by bank borrowings,” he added. CPIL has bought 20 acres for the project.
IT industry may grow at 11-12% next fiscal: PwC India
Hyderabad: The pent-up demand for information technology products and solutions, geographical diversification, focus on niche service offerings will help drive the industry growth, Sanjay Dhawan, Leader Technology, PwC India, has said.
The increased technology adoption by the Indian Government would also boost prospects of domestic revenue growth. The industry is most likely to grow at around 11-12 per cent in the coming financial year, he said, commenting on the prospects for the industry in the New Year.
"Crossing the $100-billion revenue mark, with a growth rate of 4 per cent in 2011-12 was a milestone for the Indian IT-IT-enabled services industry. However, this year (2012-13) has been a contrast with the sector going through a challenging phase,” he commented.
This is due to the macro-economic scenario, turmoil in key markets (the US and the UK), currency volatility, domestic policy paralysis, lower spend on IT and long sales cycle impacted by slow decision-making at customer end, he observed.
“As a result, projects have slowed down in the last couple of quarters and have impacted the growth prospects of the sector. The industry is expected to close this financial year with about 9-10 per cent growth,” he said.
The industry is still expected to demonstrate resilience and present a positive outlook for the next year (2013-14). New technologies such as social media, cloud, mobility and analytics would drive the growth, he said.
The increased technology adoption by the Indian Government would also boost prospects of domestic revenue growth. The industry is most likely to grow at around 11-12 per cent in the coming financial year, he said, commenting on the prospects for the industry in the New Year.
"Crossing the $100-billion revenue mark, with a growth rate of 4 per cent in 2011-12 was a milestone for the Indian IT-IT-enabled services industry. However, this year (2012-13) has been a contrast with the sector going through a challenging phase,” he commented.
This is due to the macro-economic scenario, turmoil in key markets (the US and the UK), currency volatility, domestic policy paralysis, lower spend on IT and long sales cycle impacted by slow decision-making at customer end, he observed.
“As a result, projects have slowed down in the last couple of quarters and have impacted the growth prospects of the sector. The industry is expected to close this financial year with about 9-10 per cent growth,” he said.
The industry is still expected to demonstrate resilience and present a positive outlook for the next year (2013-14). New technologies such as social media, cloud, mobility and analytics would drive the growth, he said.
India, Malaysia to jointly develop projects in third countries
New Delhi: India and Malaysia have reached an understanding to jointly work on infrastructure and housing projects in countries such as Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Indonesia.
Indian Railway Construction Company Limited has already signed a memorandum of understanding with Malaysia’s Scomi Rail to undertake the proposed Colombo monorail project. A formal announcement on the tie-up is expected soon.
Scomi Rail has been shortlisted for developing the monorail project in Chennai. It would also bid for tenders recently floated for monorail projects in Delhi and Kerala.
In 2010, India’s GMR Group and Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad had won a joint contract to operate the Ibrahim Nassir International Airport in Male for 25 years. Recently, the Maldives government had terminated the contract, citing irregularities in the selection procedure.
Malvinder Singh, co-chair, India-Malaysia CEO Forum, said, “The India-Malaysia CEO Forum was constituted about two years back to increase trade and investment between the two countries. We have identified six core areas of collaboration in sectors such as construction and infrastructure, education, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and information technology. We have also decided to jointly engage in such projects in third countries.”
The two countries were scouting for joint business opportunities in Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries and planned to explore the possibilities of developing infrastructure projects in Africa, Singh said.
Malaysian investment in India is estimated at about $7.8 billion, while Indian investment in the country stands at about $3 billion. In India, Malaysia has invested in the power, oil refineries, telecom and electrical equipment industries. Notable among its private sector alliances in India are Maxis Communications’ tie-up with Aircel, TM International’s with Spice Communications, Axiata’s with IDEA Cellular and Khazanah’s with IDFC. Malaysian companies have completed 52 construction projects worth about $2.34 billion in India. Currently, they are implementing another 35 projects.
Indian companies that have made major investments in Malaysia include Reliance Industries Limited, Ballarpur Industries, Larsen & Toubro and Wipro. Biocon India, Manipal University and Strides Arcolabs have announced fresh investments in Malaysia in the past six months.
In the January-September period, trade between India and Malaysia increased about seven per cent to $9.81 billion. Last financial year, it stood at $13.5 billion. However, while India’s exports to Malaysia rose from $2.58 billion in 2007-08 to $3.98 billion in 2011-12, imports from that country rose about 60 per cent to $9.56 billion. Consequently, India’s trade deficit with Malaysia widened to $ 5.58 billion last financial year.
Indian Railway Construction Company Limited has already signed a memorandum of understanding with Malaysia’s Scomi Rail to undertake the proposed Colombo monorail project. A formal announcement on the tie-up is expected soon.
Scomi Rail has been shortlisted for developing the monorail project in Chennai. It would also bid for tenders recently floated for monorail projects in Delhi and Kerala.
In 2010, India’s GMR Group and Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad had won a joint contract to operate the Ibrahim Nassir International Airport in Male for 25 years. Recently, the Maldives government had terminated the contract, citing irregularities in the selection procedure.
Malvinder Singh, co-chair, India-Malaysia CEO Forum, said, “The India-Malaysia CEO Forum was constituted about two years back to increase trade and investment between the two countries. We have identified six core areas of collaboration in sectors such as construction and infrastructure, education, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and information technology. We have also decided to jointly engage in such projects in third countries.”
The two countries were scouting for joint business opportunities in Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries and planned to explore the possibilities of developing infrastructure projects in Africa, Singh said.
Malaysian investment in India is estimated at about $7.8 billion, while Indian investment in the country stands at about $3 billion. In India, Malaysia has invested in the power, oil refineries, telecom and electrical equipment industries. Notable among its private sector alliances in India are Maxis Communications’ tie-up with Aircel, TM International’s with Spice Communications, Axiata’s with IDEA Cellular and Khazanah’s with IDFC. Malaysian companies have completed 52 construction projects worth about $2.34 billion in India. Currently, they are implementing another 35 projects.
Indian companies that have made major investments in Malaysia include Reliance Industries Limited, Ballarpur Industries, Larsen & Toubro and Wipro. Biocon India, Manipal University and Strides Arcolabs have announced fresh investments in Malaysia in the past six months.
In the January-September period, trade between India and Malaysia increased about seven per cent to $9.81 billion. Last financial year, it stood at $13.5 billion. However, while India’s exports to Malaysia rose from $2.58 billion in 2007-08 to $3.98 billion in 2011-12, imports from that country rose about 60 per cent to $9.56 billion. Consequently, India’s trade deficit with Malaysia widened to $ 5.58 billion last financial year.
Uno Minda, Korean firm tie up to make automotive lamps
New Delhi: Auto components manufacturer Uno Minda of NK Minda Group and AMS Corporation of Korea on Wednesday said the companies are entering into a technical licence agreement for design, manufacture and sale of automotive lamps in India.
With this agreement, AMS would provide technical support for automotive lamps through conventional light sources and new technologies such as light-emitting diode sources, for four-wheeler manufacturers in India and Indonesia.
“Though a young company, AMS has exceptional in-house technologies. The expertise their engineers have gained in designing and manufacture of lamps for some of the major original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in Korea is outstanding,” said N.K. Minda, Chairman and Managing Director.
AMS also has footprints in China, Uzbekistan, North America and South America.
With this partnership, Minda is also venturing into a new product line, in keeping with its diversification and consolidation approach to the Indian market, he said.
“India is a growing market for us and we are pleased to partner with Uno Minda to bring best practices to Indian OEMs and to explore and expand the markets within Asia,” said S.M. Park, President, AMS.
This is the second such agreement by Uno Minda.
The company earlier this month had entered into a joint venture with Japan based Nabtesco Automotive Corporation for designing, manufacture and sale of air brake products for commercial vehicles and clutch products for passenger vehicles.
With this agreement, AMS would provide technical support for automotive lamps through conventional light sources and new technologies such as light-emitting diode sources, for four-wheeler manufacturers in India and Indonesia.
“Though a young company, AMS has exceptional in-house technologies. The expertise their engineers have gained in designing and manufacture of lamps for some of the major original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in Korea is outstanding,” said N.K. Minda, Chairman and Managing Director.
AMS also has footprints in China, Uzbekistan, North America and South America.
With this partnership, Minda is also venturing into a new product line, in keeping with its diversification and consolidation approach to the Indian market, he said.
“India is a growing market for us and we are pleased to partner with Uno Minda to bring best practices to Indian OEMs and to explore and expand the markets within Asia,” said S.M. Park, President, AMS.
This is the second such agreement by Uno Minda.
The company earlier this month had entered into a joint venture with Japan based Nabtesco Automotive Corporation for designing, manufacture and sale of air brake products for commercial vehicles and clutch products for passenger vehicles.
Tesco sets up sourcing arm to buy food from India
Mumbai: Tesco Plc has set up an Indian subsidiary to buy fresh and processed foods from the country for its global stores, in a move that could help the world's third largest retailer trim costs and develop local expertise before opening shops here.
"Fruits, marine, rice would be a few of the things we would be exploring," said a spokesperson at the UK retailer, which already buys around 7% of its international sourcing from India.
Tesco has been sourcing general merchandise and apparel from India since almost a decade through its international sourcing company's offices in Bengaluru and New Delhi that act like liaison centres.
This is the first instance of Tesco opening a sourcing arm in the country. The spokesperson said it will bring new opportunities for suppliers of food and other goods in India.
Tesco sets up sourcing arm to buy food from India
Industry experts say having a local company will help Tesco build back-end operations and negotiation clout among suppliers, which will be handy when it decides to enter the country's estimated $400-billion, or about Rs 22 lakh crore, retail market.
"The capabilities that they will develop on food will stand them on a good stead once they scale up their India operations," Abheek Singhi, partner and director at Boston Consulting Group, said.
BCG estimates that food is the largest consumption category in the country, accounting for 31% of total consumer spends.
Almost three weeks ago, Indian Parliament gave the goahead to foreign supermarkets to invest in India, paving the way for global companies such as Walmart, Carrefour and Tesco to operate retail stores in partnership with Indian companies.
Tesco in India has a franchisee agreement with Tata's retailing arm Trent Ltd to provide retail expertise and supplies for the latter's Star Bazaar hypermarket chain.
While India has for long allowed 100% overseas ownerships in wholesale companies that are only allowed to sell to retailers and businesses, Tesco hasn't opened any such store unlike its global rivals such as Walmart and Carrefour.
Tesco earlier this year said it plans to source products with a retail value of 370 million pounds (about .`3,270 crore) from India in the 12 months ending February 2013, up from 325 million pounds (about Rs 2,875 crore) in the previous year.
The new move comes at a time when Tesco is going slow on global expansion due to sluggish sales in the West, including its home market. Earlier this month, Tesco signalled it might exit its struggling supermarket in the United States, and that it had appointed advisors to "review" the future of its Fresh & Easy neighbourhood grocery store chain in that country.
The Indian market is one of its last bastions for growth. Earlier, this month ET had reported that Tesco chief executive Philip Clarke made a hushhush visit and met Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata and other Tata Group officials to set the ball rolling on the retailer's India plans.
International media reports suggest that Tesco has zeroed in on Mumbai and Bengaluru for its possible India debut.
"Fruits, marine, rice would be a few of the things we would be exploring," said a spokesperson at the UK retailer, which already buys around 7% of its international sourcing from India.
Tesco has been sourcing general merchandise and apparel from India since almost a decade through its international sourcing company's offices in Bengaluru and New Delhi that act like liaison centres.
This is the first instance of Tesco opening a sourcing arm in the country. The spokesperson said it will bring new opportunities for suppliers of food and other goods in India.
Tesco sets up sourcing arm to buy food from India
Industry experts say having a local company will help Tesco build back-end operations and negotiation clout among suppliers, which will be handy when it decides to enter the country's estimated $400-billion, or about Rs 22 lakh crore, retail market.
"The capabilities that they will develop on food will stand them on a good stead once they scale up their India operations," Abheek Singhi, partner and director at Boston Consulting Group, said.
BCG estimates that food is the largest consumption category in the country, accounting for 31% of total consumer spends.
Almost three weeks ago, Indian Parliament gave the goahead to foreign supermarkets to invest in India, paving the way for global companies such as Walmart, Carrefour and Tesco to operate retail stores in partnership with Indian companies.
Tesco in India has a franchisee agreement with Tata's retailing arm Trent Ltd to provide retail expertise and supplies for the latter's Star Bazaar hypermarket chain.
While India has for long allowed 100% overseas ownerships in wholesale companies that are only allowed to sell to retailers and businesses, Tesco hasn't opened any such store unlike its global rivals such as Walmart and Carrefour.
Tesco earlier this year said it plans to source products with a retail value of 370 million pounds (about .`3,270 crore) from India in the 12 months ending February 2013, up from 325 million pounds (about Rs 2,875 crore) in the previous year.
The new move comes at a time when Tesco is going slow on global expansion due to sluggish sales in the West, including its home market. Earlier this month, Tesco signalled it might exit its struggling supermarket in the United States, and that it had appointed advisors to "review" the future of its Fresh & Easy neighbourhood grocery store chain in that country.
The Indian market is one of its last bastions for growth. Earlier, this month ET had reported that Tesco chief executive Philip Clarke made a hushhush visit and met Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata and other Tata Group officials to set the ball rolling on the retailer's India plans.
International media reports suggest that Tesco has zeroed in on Mumbai and Bengaluru for its possible India debut.
Essar Power commissions 600 MW unit at Mahan project
Mumbai: Essar Power has commissioned the first phase of 600 MW, of its 1,200 MW Mahan power project. The plant was synchronised with the grid and has commenced generating power, said the company in a press release on Wednesday.
The Mahan unit in Madhya Pradesh will be Essar’s eighth operational power plant. It has 3,910 MW of generation capacity, compared to 1,220 MW at the time of the company’s IPO in May last year.
The second unit at Mahan is expected to begin commercial operations during the first quarter of the next fiscal.
The Mahan-I project entails a $1.2-billion (about Rs 6,600 crore) investment by Essar Power. It is the company’s third coal-fired power project to enter commercial operations taking its total capacity of 2,310 MW this year.
Coal Sourcing
So far, the 600 MW capacity is the single largest unit commissioned in Madhya Pradesh. The plant will use both imported and domestic coal sourced from Coal India’s e-auction.
Essar Power received stage-1 forest clearance for the Mahan coal block in October. In the interim, the company has made an application for tapering coal linkage allocation from Coal India.
Naresh Nayyar, Chief Executive Officer, said the company has tripled its generation capacity over the past couple of years.
“Our focus now, is to develop the Mahan coal block which will provide a low-cost fuel source for the power plant, placing it among the lowest cost power generators in India,” he said.
So Far, So Good
In June, Essar commissioned Salaya-I plant in Gujarat with 1,200 MW capacity, while the 510 MW Vadinar-P2 plant also in Gujarat went live in November. The plant provides power to Essar Oil’s Vadinar refinery. The coal-fired power generation is having a positive impact on the refining margins, the company said in a statement.
The Salaya and Mahan plant will sell the majority of their output to state electricity boards. The other six operational power plants are for captive use.
The captive plant of 2,110 MW are at Hazira (515 MW, gas fired) and Bhander (500 MW, gas fired) supplying the Essar Steel plant at Hazira, while Vadinar (120 MW, refinery residue, multifuel), Vadinar P1 (380 MW, gas fired) and Vadinar P2 (510 MW, coal fired) are captive to the Essar Oil refinery at Vadinar. The other, Algoma (85 MW, gas fired), is captive to the Essar Steel plant in Algoma, Canada.
The Mahan unit in Madhya Pradesh will be Essar’s eighth operational power plant. It has 3,910 MW of generation capacity, compared to 1,220 MW at the time of the company’s IPO in May last year.
The second unit at Mahan is expected to begin commercial operations during the first quarter of the next fiscal.
The Mahan-I project entails a $1.2-billion (about Rs 6,600 crore) investment by Essar Power. It is the company’s third coal-fired power project to enter commercial operations taking its total capacity of 2,310 MW this year.
Coal Sourcing
So far, the 600 MW capacity is the single largest unit commissioned in Madhya Pradesh. The plant will use both imported and domestic coal sourced from Coal India’s e-auction.
Essar Power received stage-1 forest clearance for the Mahan coal block in October. In the interim, the company has made an application for tapering coal linkage allocation from Coal India.
Naresh Nayyar, Chief Executive Officer, said the company has tripled its generation capacity over the past couple of years.
“Our focus now, is to develop the Mahan coal block which will provide a low-cost fuel source for the power plant, placing it among the lowest cost power generators in India,” he said.
So Far, So Good
In June, Essar commissioned Salaya-I plant in Gujarat with 1,200 MW capacity, while the 510 MW Vadinar-P2 plant also in Gujarat went live in November. The plant provides power to Essar Oil’s Vadinar refinery. The coal-fired power generation is having a positive impact on the refining margins, the company said in a statement.
The Salaya and Mahan plant will sell the majority of their output to state electricity boards. The other six operational power plants are for captive use.
The captive plant of 2,110 MW are at Hazira (515 MW, gas fired) and Bhander (500 MW, gas fired) supplying the Essar Steel plant at Hazira, while Vadinar (120 MW, refinery residue, multifuel), Vadinar P1 (380 MW, gas fired) and Vadinar P2 (510 MW, coal fired) are captive to the Essar Oil refinery at Vadinar. The other, Algoma (85 MW, gas fired), is captive to the Essar Steel plant in Algoma, Canada.
Rs 205-cr scholarships disbursed to women scientists
New Delhi: Till date, the Government has dispensed Rs 205 crore as scholarships for women scientists. The maximum number of scholarships was given for life sciences at 820, followed by self-employment in intellectual property rights at 310, and for development of rural technology at 300, an official release said.
The scholarships were given under the Women Scientists Scholarship Scheme (WSSS), Ministry of Science and Technology.
Among the other subjects for which scholarships were given to women are biotechnology (60), earth & atmospheric sciences (92), engineering sciences (176), physical & mathematical sciences (199), and chemical sciences (221).
Out of all the women fellowship awardees, about 35 per cent were able to get positions in sectors such as R&D institutions, colleges, universities and the public sector, the S&T Ministry said.
The scholarships were given under the Women Scientists Scholarship Scheme (WSSS), Ministry of Science and Technology.
Among the other subjects for which scholarships were given to women are biotechnology (60), earth & atmospheric sciences (92), engineering sciences (176), physical & mathematical sciences (199), and chemical sciences (221).
Out of all the women fellowship awardees, about 35 per cent were able to get positions in sectors such as R&D institutions, colleges, universities and the public sector, the S&T Ministry said.
Nod for 12 foreign investment plans of Rs 800 cr
New Delhi: The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) has rejected Mahindra and Mahindra’s proposal to form a defence joint venture with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defence System even as it approved 12 other foreign direct investment proposals worth Rs 802 crore.
Among the key proposals that received the Government’s green signal is the Rs 300-crore bid by Ratnakar Bank for foreign equity infusion.
The proposal of Swedish furniture major IKEA has been recommended for consideration by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, an official release said. After the investment board’s clearance, FDI proposals of over Rs 1,200 crore still need clearance by the Cabinet committee.
Taqa Jyoti Energy Ventures has received the Government’s approval to bring in foreign investment of Rs 252 crore while Hyderabad-based Mylan Laboratories can also go ahead with its Rs 173-crore proposal to acquire an existing pharmaceutical manufacturing facility.
The statement said along with M&M, FDI proposals of Coimbatore-based Ampo Valves India and Mumbai-based Berggruen Real Estates have been rejected.
Commodity exchange MCX’s application for post facto approval of foreign investment was withdrawn from the investment board’s agenda. The exchange had sought approval of investment received before the issuance of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion’s Press Note 2 of 2008 that gave guidelines for foreign investment in commodity exchanges
Among the key proposals that received the Government’s green signal is the Rs 300-crore bid by Ratnakar Bank for foreign equity infusion.
The proposal of Swedish furniture major IKEA has been recommended for consideration by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, an official release said. After the investment board’s clearance, FDI proposals of over Rs 1,200 crore still need clearance by the Cabinet committee.
Taqa Jyoti Energy Ventures has received the Government’s approval to bring in foreign investment of Rs 252 crore while Hyderabad-based Mylan Laboratories can also go ahead with its Rs 173-crore proposal to acquire an existing pharmaceutical manufacturing facility.
The statement said along with M&M, FDI proposals of Coimbatore-based Ampo Valves India and Mumbai-based Berggruen Real Estates have been rejected.
Commodity exchange MCX’s application for post facto approval of foreign investment was withdrawn from the investment board’s agenda. The exchange had sought approval of investment received before the issuance of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion’s Press Note 2 of 2008 that gave guidelines for foreign investment in commodity exchanges
Aurobindo gets US nod for cancer-related drug
Hyderabad: Aurobindo Pharma Ltd has received final approvals from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to manufacture and market Ondansetron Injection and Ondansetron Injection.
The approved products were the generic equivalent of GlaxoSmithKline’s Zofran injection and indicated for prevention of nausea and vomiting associated with initial and repeat course of emetogenic cancer chemotherapy or post-operative nausea, the Hyderabad-based company said in a release on Monday.
These were the first Abbreviated New Drug Applicatons to be approved out of Unit IV formulation facility in Hyderabad for manufacturing general liquid injectable and ophthalmic products.
They would be marketed and sold by Aurobindo's wholly owned subsidiary AuroMedics Pharma LLC, and were ready for launch, the release added.
The approved products were the generic equivalent of GlaxoSmithKline’s Zofran injection and indicated for prevention of nausea and vomiting associated with initial and repeat course of emetogenic cancer chemotherapy or post-operative nausea, the Hyderabad-based company said in a release on Monday.
These were the first Abbreviated New Drug Applicatons to be approved out of Unit IV formulation facility in Hyderabad for manufacturing general liquid injectable and ophthalmic products.
They would be marketed and sold by Aurobindo's wholly owned subsidiary AuroMedics Pharma LLC, and were ready for launch, the release added.
Railways to invest Rs 5 lakh cr during 12th five year plan
New Delhi: The railways plan to invest Rs 5 lakh crore in capacity addition during the 12 Five-Year Plan (2012-17), according to a senior official of the Indian Railway Finance Corp, the financing arm of the state-run enterprise.
About a fifth of this corpus, which is a substantial jump from the 11th Plan's expenditure target of 1.09 lakh crore, will be raised by IRFC through market borrowings while the rest will come through budgetary support, internal revenues and the public-private partnerships, the official said.
IRFC's market borrowing plan includes issuance of tax-free bonds worth about 10,000 crore by end of January, the official added.
"To financially boost its infrastructure development plans, the railways will have to raise money from the market, given the internal resources add a meager percent to its revenues," the official said. Cash-strapped Indian Railways, which manages the world's third largest rail network, is keen on attracting private investment as it does not generate enough funds to finance its development plans.
Revenue shortfall has already forced it to cut plan outlay for the current fiscal to Rs 55,881 crore from the Rs 60,100 crore targeted earlier.
"For capacity addition, railways can't depend solely on internal resources or market borrowings, it'll have to invite private partners," a railway official said.
To facilitate this, the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure recently approved a policy on participative models for rail connectivity and capacity augmentation, in line with the railways' internal policy document.
"The ministry of railways wishes to attract private capital for accelerated construction of fixed rail infrastructure. For this, it has formulated participative investment models for its existing shelf of projects and also for new ones," the policy document said.
The modes suggested to route private investment in fixed rail infrastructure are non-government railway model, joint ventures, execution of projects through the build, operate, transfer mode, capacity augmentation, and state government projects.
"This kind of policy is welcome but a confidence building measure is required. Given the unsuccessful past experience with private partners, the private confidence in railways is not high," said Vinayak Chatterjee, chairman of Feedback Infra.
Indian Railways transports 2.65 million tonne of freight and 23 million passengers every day.
About a fifth of this corpus, which is a substantial jump from the 11th Plan's expenditure target of 1.09 lakh crore, will be raised by IRFC through market borrowings while the rest will come through budgetary support, internal revenues and the public-private partnerships, the official said.
IRFC's market borrowing plan includes issuance of tax-free bonds worth about 10,000 crore by end of January, the official added.
"To financially boost its infrastructure development plans, the railways will have to raise money from the market, given the internal resources add a meager percent to its revenues," the official said. Cash-strapped Indian Railways, which manages the world's third largest rail network, is keen on attracting private investment as it does not generate enough funds to finance its development plans.
Revenue shortfall has already forced it to cut plan outlay for the current fiscal to Rs 55,881 crore from the Rs 60,100 crore targeted earlier.
"For capacity addition, railways can't depend solely on internal resources or market borrowings, it'll have to invite private partners," a railway official said.
To facilitate this, the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure recently approved a policy on participative models for rail connectivity and capacity augmentation, in line with the railways' internal policy document.
"The ministry of railways wishes to attract private capital for accelerated construction of fixed rail infrastructure. For this, it has formulated participative investment models for its existing shelf of projects and also for new ones," the policy document said.
The modes suggested to route private investment in fixed rail infrastructure are non-government railway model, joint ventures, execution of projects through the build, operate, transfer mode, capacity augmentation, and state government projects.
"This kind of policy is welcome but a confidence building measure is required. Given the unsuccessful past experience with private partners, the private confidence in railways is not high," said Vinayak Chatterjee, chairman of Feedback Infra.
Indian Railways transports 2.65 million tonne of freight and 23 million passengers every day.
FDI in services sector registered 5 per cent growth in April-October 2012
New Delhi: Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into the services sector of India has registered an increase of 5 per cent to US$ 3.6 billion during April-October 2012.
The financial and non-financial services sector had attracted FDI worth US$ 3.42 billion during the same period last year.
Foreign investment in the services sector, which contributes over 50 per cent in India’s GDP, grew to US$ 5.21 billion in 2011-12 from US$ 3.29 billion in 2010-11.
Hotel and tourism (US$ 3.11 billion), metallurgy (US$ 1.21 billion), construction (US$ 691 million) and automobile (US$ 743 million) are the other sectors which received high level of FDI during the same period.
The high levels of FDI came during the same period from Mauritius (US$ 6.75 billion), Japan (US$ 1.52 billion), Singapore (US$ 1.24 billion), Netherlands (US$ 1.05 billion) and UK (US$ 611 million), as per the data released by the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP).
Foreign investments are considered vital for India. The Government of India is taking huge steps, including involving stakeholders in policy formation, to attract more investment and to make investment regime more friendly. It has already allowed FDI in multi-brand retail sector besides hiking the cap to 100 per cent in the single brand retail.
The financial and non-financial services sector had attracted FDI worth US$ 3.42 billion during the same period last year.
Foreign investment in the services sector, which contributes over 50 per cent in India’s GDP, grew to US$ 5.21 billion in 2011-12 from US$ 3.29 billion in 2010-11.
Hotel and tourism (US$ 3.11 billion), metallurgy (US$ 1.21 billion), construction (US$ 691 million) and automobile (US$ 743 million) are the other sectors which received high level of FDI during the same period.
The high levels of FDI came during the same period from Mauritius (US$ 6.75 billion), Japan (US$ 1.52 billion), Singapore (US$ 1.24 billion), Netherlands (US$ 1.05 billion) and UK (US$ 611 million), as per the data released by the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP).
Foreign investments are considered vital for India. The Government of India is taking huge steps, including involving stakeholders in policy formation, to attract more investment and to make investment regime more friendly. It has already allowed FDI in multi-brand retail sector besides hiking the cap to 100 per cent in the single brand retail.
3 industrial clusters approved in Haryana
Chandigarh: The Haryana government will focus on cluster development as one of the strategies for industrial development in the state, and proposes to set up common facility centres in partnership with industry.
These centres will address the common needs of micro, small and medium enterprises ( MSMEs) in the areas of research and development, technology upgradation support, standardisation of products, quality testing and marking facilities, and marketing and branding initiatives.
According to a spokesman of the Haryana industries and commerce department, detailed project reports for four clusters have been prepared, and the Union MSME ministry has given its approval for three clusters — a footwear cluster in Bahadurgarh; a print and pack cluster in Karnal; and a home furnishings cluster in Panipat.
Diagnostic study reports for eight other clusters have also been prepared, and work on the preparation of detailed project reports on four of these clusters is underway.
Detailed project reports for three clusters under the Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme of the Union government’s department of industrial policy and promotion have also been prepared.
These centres will address the common needs of micro, small and medium enterprises ( MSMEs) in the areas of research and development, technology upgradation support, standardisation of products, quality testing and marking facilities, and marketing and branding initiatives.
According to a spokesman of the Haryana industries and commerce department, detailed project reports for four clusters have been prepared, and the Union MSME ministry has given its approval for three clusters — a footwear cluster in Bahadurgarh; a print and pack cluster in Karnal; and a home furnishings cluster in Panipat.
Diagnostic study reports for eight other clusters have also been prepared, and work on the preparation of detailed project reports on four of these clusters is underway.
Detailed project reports for three clusters under the Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme of the Union government’s department of industrial policy and promotion have also been prepared.
India, Russia sign pacts to boost investments
New Delhi: India and Russia on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote direct investment. The MoU envisages investments up to $2 billion in important bilateral projects or companies, privatisation and other opportunities.
The agreement was among the 10 that were signed at the 13th annual India-Russia summit. The Indian side was led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh while the Russian delegation was led by the visiting President Vladimir V. Putin.
In his address, the Prime Minister said that Russia’s deeper integration into the global economy by joining the World Trade Organisation would present more opportunities for the business communities in India and Russia.
“Our bilateral trade has grown by over 30 per cent this year. There is still untapped potential in areas such as pharmaceuticals, fertilisers, mining, steel, information technology, civil aviation, telecommunications, infrastructure, food processing, innovation and services, which we will work to exploit,” Singh said at the 13th Annual India-Russia Annual Summit meeting, which was held here on Monday.
The Prime Minister added that the two countries have asked their inter-Governmental and business-level groups to recommend specific steps for enhancing bilateral trade and investment flows.
Ties in oil, gas sectors
At the meeting, India also conveyed its interest in deepening co-operation in the oil and natural gas sectors with Russia, including through mutual investments and joint projects in third countries.
Pointing out that development of India’s nuclear energy programme had been a key pillar of the strategic partnership with Russia, Singh said that the construction of Unit 1 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project was now complete, and power generation would commence shortly.
“Negotiations for the construction of Units 3 and 4 at Kudankulam have made good progress. We intend to continue implementing the roadmap for co-operation in the nuclear energy sector that was signed during President Putin’s visit in 2010 as the then Prime Minister of Russia,” Singh said.
He said India and Russia undertook an extensive review of the multi-faceted bilateral co-operation, especially in energy, defence, space, trade and investment, science and technology, education, culture and tourism.
Helicopter deal
India and Russia also signed a contract for 71 Mi-17V-5 helicopters up from 59 helicopters signed in February 2010.
In addition, a contract for licence production of an additional 42 SU aircraft was also inked. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd also signed a MoU with NIS-GLONASS for conducting through pilot projects for providing satellite-based navigation services.
The agreement was among the 10 that were signed at the 13th annual India-Russia summit. The Indian side was led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh while the Russian delegation was led by the visiting President Vladimir V. Putin.
In his address, the Prime Minister said that Russia’s deeper integration into the global economy by joining the World Trade Organisation would present more opportunities for the business communities in India and Russia.
“Our bilateral trade has grown by over 30 per cent this year. There is still untapped potential in areas such as pharmaceuticals, fertilisers, mining, steel, information technology, civil aviation, telecommunications, infrastructure, food processing, innovation and services, which we will work to exploit,” Singh said at the 13th Annual India-Russia Annual Summit meeting, which was held here on Monday.
The Prime Minister added that the two countries have asked their inter-Governmental and business-level groups to recommend specific steps for enhancing bilateral trade and investment flows.
Ties in oil, gas sectors
At the meeting, India also conveyed its interest in deepening co-operation in the oil and natural gas sectors with Russia, including through mutual investments and joint projects in third countries.
Pointing out that development of India’s nuclear energy programme had been a key pillar of the strategic partnership with Russia, Singh said that the construction of Unit 1 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project was now complete, and power generation would commence shortly.
“Negotiations for the construction of Units 3 and 4 at Kudankulam have made good progress. We intend to continue implementing the roadmap for co-operation in the nuclear energy sector that was signed during President Putin’s visit in 2010 as the then Prime Minister of Russia,” Singh said.
He said India and Russia undertook an extensive review of the multi-faceted bilateral co-operation, especially in energy, defence, space, trade and investment, science and technology, education, culture and tourism.
Helicopter deal
India and Russia also signed a contract for 71 Mi-17V-5 helicopters up from 59 helicopters signed in February 2010.
In addition, a contract for licence production of an additional 42 SU aircraft was also inked. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd also signed a MoU with NIS-GLONASS for conducting through pilot projects for providing satellite-based navigation services.
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Fulcrum setting up new centre in Pune
Pune: US-based IT player Fulcrum Worldwide is setting up a new software delivery and operations centre at Hinjewadi Phase III in January.
The company has a centre at Pune that has a capacity of 450 seats, Rajesh Sinha, CEO, Fulcrum Worldwide, said.
“The new centre will have a capacity of 2,000 people. We have planned an investment of $30 million over the next five years,” Sinha said.
The company’s target market primarily remains US, UK/EU & APAC, but will soon expand to other markets including South Africa and West Asia, he added.
Fulcrum’s new knowledge campus will roll out new SaaS products powered by Cloud for customers in the higher education, insurance and healthcare verticals.
Apart from Pune, Fulcrum has a centre in Mumbai which has 100 employees and caters to high-level product engineering architecture for local customers.
Dhana Kumarasamy, (COO & EVP-Global Delivery), said: “In the next two years, we expect to increase the employees from the current global strength of 700 to over 1,500 employees. Fulcrum is already planning for additional land procurement within the Hinjewadi Phase III-IT Park, Pune.”
The company has a centre at Pune that has a capacity of 450 seats, Rajesh Sinha, CEO, Fulcrum Worldwide, said.
“The new centre will have a capacity of 2,000 people. We have planned an investment of $30 million over the next five years,” Sinha said.
The company’s target market primarily remains US, UK/EU & APAC, but will soon expand to other markets including South Africa and West Asia, he added.
Fulcrum’s new knowledge campus will roll out new SaaS products powered by Cloud for customers in the higher education, insurance and healthcare verticals.
Apart from Pune, Fulcrum has a centre in Mumbai which has 100 employees and caters to high-level product engineering architecture for local customers.
Dhana Kumarasamy, (COO & EVP-Global Delivery), said: “In the next two years, we expect to increase the employees from the current global strength of 700 to over 1,500 employees. Fulcrum is already planning for additional land procurement within the Hinjewadi Phase III-IT Park, Pune.”
Cognizant acquires 6 companies of German IT firm C1 Group
Chennai: Cognizant Technology Solutions on Friday announced the acquisition of six companies of the C1 Group, a German information technology services and consulting firm. It did not disclose the value of the transaction, and said these acquisitions would help strengthen its presence in Germany and Switzerland.
The acquired companies are focused on three major industry segments — manufacturing and logistics, energy and utilities, and financial services. The transaction is expected to close in the first three months of 2013, subject to the successful completion of certain closing conditions and regulatory approvals, added the company announcement.
The six companies are btconsult GmbH (process and technology consulting and SAP), C:1 Solutions GmbH (consulting and enterprise solutions on SAP, BPM, ECM and ERM); psc Management Consulting GmbH (process and technology consulting); C:1 SetCon GmbH (software engineering and testing); Enterprise Services AG, a Swiss company (process and IT consulting); and C:1 Holding GmbH.
Under the terms, 500 professionals in various locations in Germany and Switzerland are expected to join Cognizant.
"The strategic acquisition reiterates the company's commitment to the German and the larger European markets, and reinforces its position as one of the major IT services and consulting companies across the region", said Francisco D’Souza, chief executive, Cognizant.
These companies also bring expertise in enterprise application services (specifically SAP), and high-end testing services from test consulting, strategy and design to implementation, added the announcement.
Peter Schumacher, president & CEO, Value Leadership Group, said the move underscores the growing significance of the continental European market, in particular, Germany and Switzerland. "It reflects a very different strategy compared to Infosys's acquisition of Lodestone. While Lodestone is a focused "big-five style" company that provides SAP implementation and management consulting services mainly for large companies in pharmaceuticals and manufacturing, Cognizant is acquiring companies that provide a broad portfolio of technical, industry-domain, and operational consulting capabilities across a wide set of customers and sectors.”
“While the acquisition is complex, Cognizant’s strong German delivery centre in India (formerly T-Systems, Pune) provides an inherent advantage. The acquisition is expected to help Cognizant penetrate, more successfully, the large number of German medium-size businesses, called Mittelstand.” he added.
The merger of the C1 companies with Cognizant would support the latter’s growth strategy for Europe and create a bond with C1’s remaining companies, said Wilfried Förster, founder of the C1 Group. The move would enable the two companies to drive future diversification, and realise the strong growth potential of combined strengths, he said.
He added that international expansion was critical for parts of the group (C1 Group) to continue its growth, develop better solutions for current and future customers, and provide greater opportunities for its employees.
C1 Group has about 1,200 consultants and IT specialists across a range of industries and lines of service, from strategic consulting, process and systems integration and application development to 24x7 support.
Cognizant currently has a little over 50 delivery centres worldwide and around 150,400 employees as of September 30. The company has been looking at strategic acquisition for growth.
The acquired companies are focused on three major industry segments — manufacturing and logistics, energy and utilities, and financial services. The transaction is expected to close in the first three months of 2013, subject to the successful completion of certain closing conditions and regulatory approvals, added the company announcement.
The six companies are btconsult GmbH (process and technology consulting and SAP), C:1 Solutions GmbH (consulting and enterprise solutions on SAP, BPM, ECM and ERM); psc Management Consulting GmbH (process and technology consulting); C:1 SetCon GmbH (software engineering and testing); Enterprise Services AG, a Swiss company (process and IT consulting); and C:1 Holding GmbH.
Under the terms, 500 professionals in various locations in Germany and Switzerland are expected to join Cognizant.
"The strategic acquisition reiterates the company's commitment to the German and the larger European markets, and reinforces its position as one of the major IT services and consulting companies across the region", said Francisco D’Souza, chief executive, Cognizant.
These companies also bring expertise in enterprise application services (specifically SAP), and high-end testing services from test consulting, strategy and design to implementation, added the announcement.
Peter Schumacher, president & CEO, Value Leadership Group, said the move underscores the growing significance of the continental European market, in particular, Germany and Switzerland. "It reflects a very different strategy compared to Infosys's acquisition of Lodestone. While Lodestone is a focused "big-five style" company that provides SAP implementation and management consulting services mainly for large companies in pharmaceuticals and manufacturing, Cognizant is acquiring companies that provide a broad portfolio of technical, industry-domain, and operational consulting capabilities across a wide set of customers and sectors.”
“While the acquisition is complex, Cognizant’s strong German delivery centre in India (formerly T-Systems, Pune) provides an inherent advantage. The acquisition is expected to help Cognizant penetrate, more successfully, the large number of German medium-size businesses, called Mittelstand.” he added.
The merger of the C1 companies with Cognizant would support the latter’s growth strategy for Europe and create a bond with C1’s remaining companies, said Wilfried Förster, founder of the C1 Group. The move would enable the two companies to drive future diversification, and realise the strong growth potential of combined strengths, he said.
He added that international expansion was critical for parts of the group (C1 Group) to continue its growth, develop better solutions for current and future customers, and provide greater opportunities for its employees.
C1 Group has about 1,200 consultants and IT specialists across a range of industries and lines of service, from strategic consulting, process and systems integration and application development to 24x7 support.
Cognizant currently has a little over 50 delivery centres worldwide and around 150,400 employees as of September 30. The company has been looking at strategic acquisition for growth.
Eight Indians among top 100 CEOs, ITC chief ranked 7th
Kolkata: In yet another sign of rising Indian dominance in the global business arena, eight corporate bigwigs from the country have made it to the list of the world’s best chief executive officers.
The list that Harvard Business Review has come out with is led by former Apple chief Steve Jobs, who passed away last year. The sole Indian representation in the top 10 is ITC Chairman Y C Deveshwar at seventh.
The 65-year-old joined the Kolkata-based cigarette-to-hotels major joined ITC in 1968 and became its chief executive and chairman in 1996.
Deveshwar pipped other Indian corporate honchos, including ONGC former chairman and managing director Subir Raha (ranked 13), RIL chairman and CEO Mukesh Ambani (28), Larsen & Toubro’s A M Naik (32), former Bharat Heavy Electricals CMD A K Puri (38), Bharti Airtel’s Sunil Bharti Mittal (65), Jindal Steel & Power’s Naveen Jindal (87) and former SAIL chief V S Jain (89) — among other global business leaders.
Harvard Business Review has rated the CEOs based on the long-term performance of the companies and the contributions that the CEOs have made to them.(BEST OF ‘EM ALL)
The criteria included how much total shareholder returns had changed during their tenure and the overall increase in market capitalisation.
Jobs earned the top spot, as from 1997 to 2011, Apple’s market value increased by $359 billion.
Those who are in the top 5 also include Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com (2), Yun Jong-Yong of Samsung Electronics (3), Roger Agnelli of Vale (4) and John C Martin of Gilead Sciences (5).
During Deveshwar’s tenure, ITC’s market value increased by $45 billion, which made him the Indian representative in the top-10 league. In 2011, he was conferred the Padma Bhushan by the government of India, honouring his contributions to the nation.
While HBR’s top 100 list in 2010 had candidates from the S&P Global 1200 and BRIC 40 lists, this year it worked with three other emerging-market indexes as well. The pool of CEOs studied increased by roughly one-third, from 1,999 in 2010 to 3,143 this year.
HBR stated this year’s list looked at criteria like making the group truly global and financial performance during their tenure and also in terms of corporate social performance for the selection process.
The list that Harvard Business Review has come out with is led by former Apple chief Steve Jobs, who passed away last year. The sole Indian representation in the top 10 is ITC Chairman Y C Deveshwar at seventh.
The 65-year-old joined the Kolkata-based cigarette-to-hotels major joined ITC in 1968 and became its chief executive and chairman in 1996.
Deveshwar pipped other Indian corporate honchos, including ONGC former chairman and managing director Subir Raha (ranked 13), RIL chairman and CEO Mukesh Ambani (28), Larsen & Toubro’s A M Naik (32), former Bharat Heavy Electricals CMD A K Puri (38), Bharti Airtel’s Sunil Bharti Mittal (65), Jindal Steel & Power’s Naveen Jindal (87) and former SAIL chief V S Jain (89) — among other global business leaders.
Harvard Business Review has rated the CEOs based on the long-term performance of the companies and the contributions that the CEOs have made to them.(BEST OF ‘EM ALL)
The criteria included how much total shareholder returns had changed during their tenure and the overall increase in market capitalisation.
Jobs earned the top spot, as from 1997 to 2011, Apple’s market value increased by $359 billion.
Those who are in the top 5 also include Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com (2), Yun Jong-Yong of Samsung Electronics (3), Roger Agnelli of Vale (4) and John C Martin of Gilead Sciences (5).
During Deveshwar’s tenure, ITC’s market value increased by $45 billion, which made him the Indian representative in the top-10 league. In 2011, he was conferred the Padma Bhushan by the government of India, honouring his contributions to the nation.
While HBR’s top 100 list in 2010 had candidates from the S&P Global 1200 and BRIC 40 lists, this year it worked with three other emerging-market indexes as well. The pool of CEOs studied increased by roughly one-third, from 1,999 in 2010 to 3,143 this year.
HBR stated this year’s list looked at criteria like making the group truly global and financial performance during their tenure and also in terms of corporate social performance for the selection process.
NMDC and Indian Railways Sign MoU for Doubling of the Railway Line from Kirandul to Jagdalpur
New Delhi: Two Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) of Public Sector Undertakings of Ministry of Steel with Ministry of Railways were signed here today. An MoU of NMDC Limited, a Navratna PSU under the administrative control of Ministry of Steel and the Indian Railways in the presence of the Union Minister of Steel, Shri Beni Prasad Verma and Union Minister for Railways, Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal here today. RINL, a PSU under the Ministry of Steel, has also signed an MoU with the Indian Railways for setting up a forged wheel factory at Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh.
As per the provisions of the MoU, the 150 km Jagdalpur - Kirandul section of the Kottavalsa - Kirandul line of the East Coast Railway will be doubled to augment the evacuation capacity of NMDC to meet the increased demand for iron ore of the Indian steel industry.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Beni Prasad Verma said that this will usher in an era of growth dedicated to the service of the Nation. He said, “I am sure that apart from benefitting the steel industry in India, the doubling of the railway line will transform the lives of the local tribal population in Bastar, Chattisgarh and adjacent states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.” Speaking about the setting up of the forged wheel factory Shri Verma said that the unit will be a specialized unit catering to the need for special grade wheels for high speed trains. He further added that setting up of the factory will considerably increase the industrial activity in the region and generate employment opportunities for the youth of the state.
Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal said that the proposed partnerships would provide the much needed impetus to investment in railway infrastructure and increase evacuation capacities from mines, plants and ports and freight traffic for the Railways. He also added that the proposed forged wheel factory would go a long way in meeting the future requirements of wheels for Indian Railways. Shri Bansal said that these two MoUs are good example of the synergy between Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Steel who have been partners for many years in developing country’s infrastructure. These projects also present a new innovative financial funding for infrastructure projects.
The MoU for doubling of railway line was signed between Shri Vinay Mittal, Chairman, Railway Board and Shri C.S. Verma, CMD, NMDC. The project will be implemented by Indian Railways at a cost Rs.826 Crores and same will be funded by NMDC with provisions for suitable returns through freight rebate. The Railways will additionally make necessary investment in wagons, locomotives, other maintenance facilities and deployment of staff. The new line is likely to create an additional traffic of upto 12 million tonne per annum (MTPA) in a phased manner.
The MoU for forged wheel factory was signed between Shri Keshav Chandra, Member Mechanical, Railway Board and Shri A.P. Choudhary, CMD, RINL. The Forged Wheel Factory being set up by RINL to supply forged wheels to the Indian Railways will have a capacity of producing 1,00,000 wheels every year. The factory, the biggest such plant in India will be completed within a schedule of 36 months at a cost of Rs. 1000 crores (Approximately) and will generate 500 to 600 jobs. The Raw material for the factory will be supplied by RINL’s plant in Vishakhapatnam in the form of Continuous Cast (CC) rounds.
Also present on the occasion were the Secretary, Ministry of Steel, Shri D.R.S. Chaudhary and other senior officers of the Ministry of Steel and Ministry of Railway.
As per the provisions of the MoU, the 150 km Jagdalpur - Kirandul section of the Kottavalsa - Kirandul line of the East Coast Railway will be doubled to augment the evacuation capacity of NMDC to meet the increased demand for iron ore of the Indian steel industry.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Beni Prasad Verma said that this will usher in an era of growth dedicated to the service of the Nation. He said, “I am sure that apart from benefitting the steel industry in India, the doubling of the railway line will transform the lives of the local tribal population in Bastar, Chattisgarh and adjacent states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.” Speaking about the setting up of the forged wheel factory Shri Verma said that the unit will be a specialized unit catering to the need for special grade wheels for high speed trains. He further added that setting up of the factory will considerably increase the industrial activity in the region and generate employment opportunities for the youth of the state.
Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal said that the proposed partnerships would provide the much needed impetus to investment in railway infrastructure and increase evacuation capacities from mines, plants and ports and freight traffic for the Railways. He also added that the proposed forged wheel factory would go a long way in meeting the future requirements of wheels for Indian Railways. Shri Bansal said that these two MoUs are good example of the synergy between Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Steel who have been partners for many years in developing country’s infrastructure. These projects also present a new innovative financial funding for infrastructure projects.
The MoU for doubling of railway line was signed between Shri Vinay Mittal, Chairman, Railway Board and Shri C.S. Verma, CMD, NMDC. The project will be implemented by Indian Railways at a cost Rs.826 Crores and same will be funded by NMDC with provisions for suitable returns through freight rebate. The Railways will additionally make necessary investment in wagons, locomotives, other maintenance facilities and deployment of staff. The new line is likely to create an additional traffic of upto 12 million tonne per annum (MTPA) in a phased manner.
The MoU for forged wheel factory was signed between Shri Keshav Chandra, Member Mechanical, Railway Board and Shri A.P. Choudhary, CMD, RINL. The Forged Wheel Factory being set up by RINL to supply forged wheels to the Indian Railways will have a capacity of producing 1,00,000 wheels every year. The factory, the biggest such plant in India will be completed within a schedule of 36 months at a cost of Rs. 1000 crores (Approximately) and will generate 500 to 600 jobs. The Raw material for the factory will be supplied by RINL’s plant in Vishakhapatnam in the form of Continuous Cast (CC) rounds.
Also present on the occasion were the Secretary, Ministry of Steel, Shri D.R.S. Chaudhary and other senior officers of the Ministry of Steel and Ministry of Railway.
Ceiling for FDI in ARCs raised to 74% from 49%
New Delhi: The government has increased the ceiling for foreign direct investment ( FDI) in asset reconstruction companies (ARCs) to 74 per cent from 49 per cent.
This is, however, subject to the condition that no sponsor should hold more than 50 per cent of the shareholding in an ARC, either by way of FDI or by routing through a foreign institutional investor (FII).
Foreign investment in ARCs will have to comply with the FDI norms in terms of entry route conditionality and sectoral caps, the finance ministry said in a release.
The 74 per cent FDI limit in ARCs will be the combined limit of FDI and FII.
With this, the prohibition on investment by FIIs in ARCs will be removed.
However, the total shareholding of an individual FII should not exceed 10 per cent of its total paid-up capital, according to the release.
“The limit of FII investment in security receipts (SRs) may be enhanced from 49 per cent to 74 per cent. Further, the individual limit of 10 per cent for investment of a single FII in each tranche of SRs issued by ARCs may be dispensed with. Such investment should be within the FII limit on corporate bonds prescribed from time to time, and sectoral caps under the extant FDI regulations should be complied with,” said the release.
The government reviewed the ceilings of FDI and FII after consulting the stakeholders and sector regulators.
The Reserve Bank of India and the Securities and Exchange Board of India will issue relevant notifications.
This is, however, subject to the condition that no sponsor should hold more than 50 per cent of the shareholding in an ARC, either by way of FDI or by routing through a foreign institutional investor (FII).
Foreign investment in ARCs will have to comply with the FDI norms in terms of entry route conditionality and sectoral caps, the finance ministry said in a release.
The 74 per cent FDI limit in ARCs will be the combined limit of FDI and FII.
With this, the prohibition on investment by FIIs in ARCs will be removed.
However, the total shareholding of an individual FII should not exceed 10 per cent of its total paid-up capital, according to the release.
“The limit of FII investment in security receipts (SRs) may be enhanced from 49 per cent to 74 per cent. Further, the individual limit of 10 per cent for investment of a single FII in each tranche of SRs issued by ARCs may be dispensed with. Such investment should be within the FII limit on corporate bonds prescribed from time to time, and sectoral caps under the extant FDI regulations should be complied with,” said the release.
The government reviewed the ceilings of FDI and FII after consulting the stakeholders and sector regulators.
The Reserve Bank of India and the Securities and Exchange Board of India will issue relevant notifications.
TCS to invest Rs 1,350 cr in new campus at Rajarhat
Mumbai/Pune: Mumbai/Pune, Dec 20 Tata Consultancy Services is setting up a new development campus at Rajarhat near Kolkata with an investment of about Rs 1,350 crore
The campus, spread over 40 acres, will house over 16,500 seats on completion. It would become operational by the end of financial year 2014-15, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) said in a statement today.
“Our growing presence in Kolkata continues to be of strategic importance for our overall business growth. We remain committed to working in close collaboration with all stakeholders in the state to help in the development of local talent and provide our customers with world-class IT solutions from this location,” TCS Chief Financial officer and Executive Director S. Mahalingam said.
The campus would be built in two phases, with the first phase to be completed in the first quarter of 2014 and the second phase by the fourth quarter of the year. In the first phase, 7,000 seats will be ready and the remaining 9,500 seats would be completed under the second phase.
“The Rajarhat facility will drive the next phase of our growth in the eastern region and help us access skilled professionals and students from in and around Kolkata. Our investment will also help catalyse further development of the talent and IT ecosystem in the area,” TCS Executive Vice-President and Global Head (Human Resources) Ajoy Mukherjee said.
Skills upgradation
Separately, the country’s largest software exporter has introduced a scheme to upgrade the skills of workers in construction and related sectors such as metalwork across the country.
“TCS has always taken the lead in developing IT and engineering talent in India. Now we are looking at how we can help also build the base of other important skills that are important for sustaining economic growth. West Bengal has a significant, scalable pool of people who can contribute to the construction industry nationally as tradesmen,” Mahalingam said.
The programme will be carried out during the construction phase while building new campuses in Kolkata, Indore and Nagpur. TCS has already launched a pilot programme at Rajarhat, where it is constructing a software development campus.
Over the course of the construction period, as many as 2,000 workers will be trained at the on-site Construction Skill Training Centre (CTSC).
Trained workers from the CTSC will be employed by building contractors at the site during the construction phase. This skill development programme will also enhance awareness towards safety-at-site and increase productivity in the industry.
LEED certification
Using sustainable, local materials for construction as well as by deploying green technologies effectively across the campus, TCS will aim to get the highest LEED certification to demonstrate its effectiveness in considerably reduce the environmental footprint of the campus.
The salient features include generation of 850 kilowatts of solar power for campus use, zero waste discharge facility with bio digester which will turn waste into gas for cooking and a sewerage treatment plant which will recycle water for use in landscaping and air conditioning.
The Rajarhat campus has facilities like amphitheatre, auditorium, cafeterias, libraries and large green open spaces, and house fitness facilities like tennis courts, basketball court, gymnasium as well as temporary accommodation for employees.
The campus, spread over 40 acres, will house over 16,500 seats on completion. It would become operational by the end of financial year 2014-15, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) said in a statement today.
“Our growing presence in Kolkata continues to be of strategic importance for our overall business growth. We remain committed to working in close collaboration with all stakeholders in the state to help in the development of local talent and provide our customers with world-class IT solutions from this location,” TCS Chief Financial officer and Executive Director S. Mahalingam said.
The campus would be built in two phases, with the first phase to be completed in the first quarter of 2014 and the second phase by the fourth quarter of the year. In the first phase, 7,000 seats will be ready and the remaining 9,500 seats would be completed under the second phase.
“The Rajarhat facility will drive the next phase of our growth in the eastern region and help us access skilled professionals and students from in and around Kolkata. Our investment will also help catalyse further development of the talent and IT ecosystem in the area,” TCS Executive Vice-President and Global Head (Human Resources) Ajoy Mukherjee said.
Skills upgradation
Separately, the country’s largest software exporter has introduced a scheme to upgrade the skills of workers in construction and related sectors such as metalwork across the country.
“TCS has always taken the lead in developing IT and engineering talent in India. Now we are looking at how we can help also build the base of other important skills that are important for sustaining economic growth. West Bengal has a significant, scalable pool of people who can contribute to the construction industry nationally as tradesmen,” Mahalingam said.
The programme will be carried out during the construction phase while building new campuses in Kolkata, Indore and Nagpur. TCS has already launched a pilot programme at Rajarhat, where it is constructing a software development campus.
Over the course of the construction period, as many as 2,000 workers will be trained at the on-site Construction Skill Training Centre (CTSC).
Trained workers from the CTSC will be employed by building contractors at the site during the construction phase. This skill development programme will also enhance awareness towards safety-at-site and increase productivity in the industry.
LEED certification
Using sustainable, local materials for construction as well as by deploying green technologies effectively across the campus, TCS will aim to get the highest LEED certification to demonstrate its effectiveness in considerably reduce the environmental footprint of the campus.
The salient features include generation of 850 kilowatts of solar power for campus use, zero waste discharge facility with bio digester which will turn waste into gas for cooking and a sewerage treatment plant which will recycle water for use in landscaping and air conditioning.
The Rajarhat campus has facilities like amphitheatre, auditorium, cafeterias, libraries and large green open spaces, and house fitness facilities like tennis courts, basketball court, gymnasium as well as temporary accommodation for employees.
UAE company bags contract from Supertech
New Delhi: Real estate developer Supertech has roped in the UAE-based Arabian Construction Company (ACC) to construct its tallest mixed-used tower, Supernova, at a cost of Rs 650 crore. ACC has been given the mandate to complete the project in four years.
When completed, one of the towers, Spira, will stand 300 m tall comprising 80 floors. It will include a luxury residence, two five-star hotels and Spira suites. The tower will also have a helipad, an observatory deck, an exclusive clubhouse and view of the Okhla Bird Sanctuary. It is being developed with an investment of Rs 2,700 crore.
ACC, which has constructed several iconic building such as the Emirates headquarters and Etisalat office in West Asia, said it would use the ‘jump form’ technology to construct the towers.
Supertech CMD, R.K Arora, and ACC Director, Rasheed Mikati, signed the contract. ACC India Managing Director, Ani Ray, said this was the first standalone contract for the company.
ACC is also constructing Lodha Developers’ project ‘World One’ in Mumbai, which has 117 floors with 450 m height, in partnership with Simplex Infrastructures, he added.
When completed, one of the towers, Spira, will stand 300 m tall comprising 80 floors. It will include a luxury residence, two five-star hotels and Spira suites. The tower will also have a helipad, an observatory deck, an exclusive clubhouse and view of the Okhla Bird Sanctuary. It is being developed with an investment of Rs 2,700 crore.
ACC, which has constructed several iconic building such as the Emirates headquarters and Etisalat office in West Asia, said it would use the ‘jump form’ technology to construct the towers.
Supertech CMD, R.K Arora, and ACC Director, Rasheed Mikati, signed the contract. ACC India Managing Director, Ani Ray, said this was the first standalone contract for the company.
ACC is also constructing Lodha Developers’ project ‘World One’ in Mumbai, which has 117 floors with 450 m height, in partnership with Simplex Infrastructures, he added.
SIDBI inks pacts with RRBs, urban co-op banks in Bengal
Kolkata: The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has entered into agreements with eight regional rural banks (RRBs) and urban co-operative banks in West Bengal.
SIDBI has already signed memorandums of understanding with the RRBs and co-operative banks for increasing credit flow to the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the region, said a press statement issued by SIDBI.
The MoUs would aim at training the staff of RRBs and co-operative banks in project appraisal, monitoring and collection as also providing free access to software on a down-scaling methodology developed for lending to micro enterprises.
“The down-scaling model focuses on cash flow-based lending instead of the traditional security-based lending, which is important for small and tiny enterprises,” the release said.
SIDBI has already signed memorandums of understanding with the RRBs and co-operative banks for increasing credit flow to the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the region, said a press statement issued by SIDBI.
The MoUs would aim at training the staff of RRBs and co-operative banks in project appraisal, monitoring and collection as also providing free access to software on a down-scaling methodology developed for lending to micro enterprises.
“The down-scaling model focuses on cash flow-based lending instead of the traditional security-based lending, which is important for small and tiny enterprises,” the release said.
FM radio sector may hit Rs 2,300-cr mark within 3 years
New Delhi: The FM radio sector is expected to touch the Rs 2,300-crore mark within three years of the roll-out of the much anticipated Phase III licences, according to estimates by CII and Ernst & Young. The sector is expected to close this fiscal year at Rs 1,400 crore with 245 private FM stations.
Currently, FM radio contributes 4 per cent to the total ad industry, lower than the global average share of 5 to10 per cent. The report stated that though radio is not considered as primary advertising platform currently, the implementation of Phase III with 839 frequencies will help the sector provide advertisers with a much deeper reach.
Listenership is largely driven by consumption at home followed by people tuning in when in transit. Around 25 per cent of total radio listenership is now on mobile phones, fuelled by handset manufacturers that have made FM radio a standard feature in most of their models.
The report said while the Phase III auctions of FM radio frequencies is expected to cover 294 cities with the auction for 839 licenses, only 52 of these licenses will be in the high revenue generating category A+, A and B cities. Experts believe though margins of the radio stations will decline in the short run they will stabilise in 3-5 years and rise subsequently.
“Phase III is also likely to make the industry more conducive to M&A due to proposals such as reduction of the license lock-in period from 5–3 years, an increase in the license period from 10 to 15 years, significantly more networking between all the stations to enable cost optimisation, ownership of multiple frequencies in a city and an increase in the foreign investment limit to 26 per cent from the current 20 per cent,” the report stated.
Ashish Pherwani, Partner, Ernst & Young, said that the growth of the FM radio industry revenues would depend on “enabling networking and cost management, development of a measurement metric which supports the industry, and ensuring license fee prices during Phase III auctions are not irrational.”
The growth in mobile and internet ad spends could, however, pose a threat to the rise of FM radio.
Some of the other key challenges highlighted by the report include limited inventory, inability to demonstrate return on investments and slow recovery of ad effective rates. “Therefore, the need of the hour is for radio industry is to collaborate and implement a measurement system that supports the growth of the industry,” the report stated.
According to IRS 2012 Q2 data, radio has an estimated audience of 158 million people, out of which FM radio accounts for 106 million. It also said that advertising revenues comprise nearly 90 per cent total revenue generated by FM radio companies.
Currently, FM radio contributes 4 per cent to the total ad industry, lower than the global average share of 5 to10 per cent. The report stated that though radio is not considered as primary advertising platform currently, the implementation of Phase III with 839 frequencies will help the sector provide advertisers with a much deeper reach.
Listenership is largely driven by consumption at home followed by people tuning in when in transit. Around 25 per cent of total radio listenership is now on mobile phones, fuelled by handset manufacturers that have made FM radio a standard feature in most of their models.
The report said while the Phase III auctions of FM radio frequencies is expected to cover 294 cities with the auction for 839 licenses, only 52 of these licenses will be in the high revenue generating category A+, A and B cities. Experts believe though margins of the radio stations will decline in the short run they will stabilise in 3-5 years and rise subsequently.
“Phase III is also likely to make the industry more conducive to M&A due to proposals such as reduction of the license lock-in period from 5–3 years, an increase in the license period from 10 to 15 years, significantly more networking between all the stations to enable cost optimisation, ownership of multiple frequencies in a city and an increase in the foreign investment limit to 26 per cent from the current 20 per cent,” the report stated.
Ashish Pherwani, Partner, Ernst & Young, said that the growth of the FM radio industry revenues would depend on “enabling networking and cost management, development of a measurement metric which supports the industry, and ensuring license fee prices during Phase III auctions are not irrational.”
The growth in mobile and internet ad spends could, however, pose a threat to the rise of FM radio.
Some of the other key challenges highlighted by the report include limited inventory, inability to demonstrate return on investments and slow recovery of ad effective rates. “Therefore, the need of the hour is for radio industry is to collaborate and implement a measurement system that supports the growth of the industry,” the report stated.
According to IRS 2012 Q2 data, radio has an estimated audience of 158 million people, out of which FM radio accounts for 106 million. It also said that advertising revenues comprise nearly 90 per cent total revenue generated by FM radio companies.
Number of Indians visiting Vienna has doubled in last 6 years
New Delhi: More and more Indians tourists are heading for Vienna, the Austrian capital which is also known to be the city with the world's best quality of living. According to the Vienna Tourist Board, the number of Indians visiting Vienna has doubled over the last six years — with an estimated 25,000 Indian tourists dropping by.
The board expects that in 2012, night stays in local hotels by Indian tourists will exceed the 2011 record of over 55,000 room nights.
Not surprising since Vienna, according to HR advisory firm Mercer's Quality of Living index, has been ranked the city with the best quality of living. And has retained the title for four years on the trot. This sort of reputation is bound to attract tourists from everywhere, not just India.
"By blending its unique imperial architectural heritage with a distinguished legacy of great artists and musicians like Mozart and Beethoven, Vienna offers one of Europe's most dynamic urban spaces," says Verena Hable, a Vienna Tourism Board official, during a recent visit to Delhi.
"With Vienna emerging as a favoured destination by Indian tourists, we look to welcoming a significantly larger inflow of tourists in the coming years."
India has several points of connect with the Austrian capital. India-born conductor Zubin Mehta, who has lived in Vienna for many years and still conducts the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, often has fellow countrymen include his performance in their itinerary.
Vienna also allows Indian tourists to do a triangular tour of the major cities of the former Hapsburg empire, by including Budapest and Prague during their visit.
The board expects that in 2012, night stays in local hotels by Indian tourists will exceed the 2011 record of over 55,000 room nights.
Not surprising since Vienna, according to HR advisory firm Mercer's Quality of Living index, has been ranked the city with the best quality of living. And has retained the title for four years on the trot. This sort of reputation is bound to attract tourists from everywhere, not just India.
"By blending its unique imperial architectural heritage with a distinguished legacy of great artists and musicians like Mozart and Beethoven, Vienna offers one of Europe's most dynamic urban spaces," says Verena Hable, a Vienna Tourism Board official, during a recent visit to Delhi.
"With Vienna emerging as a favoured destination by Indian tourists, we look to welcoming a significantly larger inflow of tourists in the coming years."
India has several points of connect with the Austrian capital. India-born conductor Zubin Mehta, who has lived in Vienna for many years and still conducts the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, often has fellow countrymen include his performance in their itinerary.
Vienna also allows Indian tourists to do a triangular tour of the major cities of the former Hapsburg empire, by including Budapest and Prague during their visit.
Friday, December 21, 2012
Mahindra to buy US partner's stakes in truck JVs
Mumbai: Utility and tractor manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has decided to buy the stake held by its US-based partner, Navistar International Corporation, in the truck and engine making joint ventures (JV) — Mahindra Navistar Automotives Ltd (MNAL) and Mahindra Navistar Engines Pvt Ltd (MNEPL) — for about Rs 175 crore.
M&M will acquire the 49 per cent stake held in both the JVs by the Navistar Group and make them wholly-owned subsidiaries. The JV for trucks was formed in 2005, while the JV for engines was formed in 2007.
While neither of the companies explained the logic behind such a move, experts said that despite being in the market for over three years, the JVs did not witness the demand expected from them, forcing the US partner to reorganise its resources.
The truck JV is yet to generate profits and M&M’s estimates of turning cash break-even this financial year remains bleak, due to the on-going slump in demand for heavy trucks in the domestic market.
Following the stake buy, M&M would take complete ownership of operations and continue to sell MNEPL and MNAL products. The sale requires regulatory approvals in India, is subject to conclusion of definitive agreements, and is expected to be completed in early 2013, the Mumbai-based company said in a statement.
The deal allows Navistar to continue sourcing components from India, while M&M would keep providing engineering services to Navistar. The US company would continue to support M&M through a licence agreement and extend necessary support to MNAL and MNEPL for the purpose of business continuity.
As part of its ‘Drive to Deliver’ turnround plan launched in August, Navistar has been conducting an analysis of all of its businesses and programmes to determine their return on invested capital (ROIC) and identify areas for improvement. Based on this business environment, Navistar has determined that it needs to redirect its efforts to other initiatives that more quickly contribute to the company’s goal to improve its ROIC,” Navistar said in a release.
Until last year, MNAL had seen an investment of Rs 710 crore with M&M projecting a further infusion of Rs 250 crore during 2012-14 for production and distribution expansion. M&M had Rs 750 crore of equity and 50-50 invested by both the partners along with debt as of that date.
Troy Clarke, president and CEO of Navistar, said, “While the Indian market has not expanded as we had originally expected, and industry challenges there continue in the near-term, we still see promise in India going forward.”
The Indian truck market is witnessing a renewed thrust by not just traditional players such as Tata Motors, VE Commercial Vehicles and Ashok Leyland, but also by new players such as Daimler (Bharat-Benz) and MAN and Scania. M&M and Navistar planned to be present in each of the commercial vehicle segments ranging from 3.5 to 49 tonne.
This is not the first time that strategic changes are seen in partnership involving M&M. The company had bought the stake held by Renault in the car making joint venture Mahindra Renault (MRPL). Prior to that, M&M had exited a tripartite joint venture involving Renault and Nissan.
M&M will acquire the 49 per cent stake held in both the JVs by the Navistar Group and make them wholly-owned subsidiaries. The JV for trucks was formed in 2005, while the JV for engines was formed in 2007.
While neither of the companies explained the logic behind such a move, experts said that despite being in the market for over three years, the JVs did not witness the demand expected from them, forcing the US partner to reorganise its resources.
The truck JV is yet to generate profits and M&M’s estimates of turning cash break-even this financial year remains bleak, due to the on-going slump in demand for heavy trucks in the domestic market.
Following the stake buy, M&M would take complete ownership of operations and continue to sell MNEPL and MNAL products. The sale requires regulatory approvals in India, is subject to conclusion of definitive agreements, and is expected to be completed in early 2013, the Mumbai-based company said in a statement.
The deal allows Navistar to continue sourcing components from India, while M&M would keep providing engineering services to Navistar. The US company would continue to support M&M through a licence agreement and extend necessary support to MNAL and MNEPL for the purpose of business continuity.
As part of its ‘Drive to Deliver’ turnround plan launched in August, Navistar has been conducting an analysis of all of its businesses and programmes to determine their return on invested capital (ROIC) and identify areas for improvement. Based on this business environment, Navistar has determined that it needs to redirect its efforts to other initiatives that more quickly contribute to the company’s goal to improve its ROIC,” Navistar said in a release.
Until last year, MNAL had seen an investment of Rs 710 crore with M&M projecting a further infusion of Rs 250 crore during 2012-14 for production and distribution expansion. M&M had Rs 750 crore of equity and 50-50 invested by both the partners along with debt as of that date.
Troy Clarke, president and CEO of Navistar, said, “While the Indian market has not expanded as we had originally expected, and industry challenges there continue in the near-term, we still see promise in India going forward.”
The Indian truck market is witnessing a renewed thrust by not just traditional players such as Tata Motors, VE Commercial Vehicles and Ashok Leyland, but also by new players such as Daimler (Bharat-Benz) and MAN and Scania. M&M and Navistar planned to be present in each of the commercial vehicle segments ranging from 3.5 to 49 tonne.
This is not the first time that strategic changes are seen in partnership involving M&M. The company had bought the stake held by Renault in the car making joint venture Mahindra Renault (MRPL). Prior to that, M&M had exited a tripartite joint venture involving Renault and Nissan.
Real estate & housing finance cos allowed to raise $1bn from abroad
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India has allowed real estate developers and housing finance companies to raise funds overseas for low-cost housing projects.
Developers and housing finance companies will be permitted to borrow $1 billion in 2012-13 under the low-cost affordable housing scheme, RBI said in a notification on Monday. The regulator said it will review the borrowing limit every year.
Developers with minimum five years of experience in residential projects and those who have not defaulted in any of their financial commitments to banks or any other agencies will be eligible to raise funds overseas.
The project for which the builder is raising funds should not be involved in any litigation. RBI has also made it mandatory that the project should be in conformity with the provisions of master plan/ development plan of the area.
"The layout should conform to the land use stipulated by the town and country planning department for housing projects," RBI said. "All necessary clearances from various bodies including revenue department with respect to land usage/environment clearance, etc are available on record."
Housing finance companies that are registered with the National Housing Bank and have a minimum capital of Rs 50 crore are eligible to raise funds overseas, RBI said. Bad loans of such companies should not exceed 2.5% of the net advances and it should have minimum net owned funds of about Rs 300 crore for the past three years to borrow overseas.
Developers and housing finance companies will be permitted to borrow $1 billion in 2012-13 under the low-cost affordable housing scheme, RBI said in a notification on Monday. The regulator said it will review the borrowing limit every year.
Developers with minimum five years of experience in residential projects and those who have not defaulted in any of their financial commitments to banks or any other agencies will be eligible to raise funds overseas.
The project for which the builder is raising funds should not be involved in any litigation. RBI has also made it mandatory that the project should be in conformity with the provisions of master plan/ development plan of the area.
"The layout should conform to the land use stipulated by the town and country planning department for housing projects," RBI said. "All necessary clearances from various bodies including revenue department with respect to land usage/environment clearance, etc are available on record."
Housing finance companies that are registered with the National Housing Bank and have a minimum capital of Rs 50 crore are eligible to raise funds overseas, RBI said. Bad loans of such companies should not exceed 2.5% of the net advances and it should have minimum net owned funds of about Rs 300 crore for the past three years to borrow overseas.
Banking Bill paves way for new banks, foreign investment
New Delhi: The government on Tuesday cleared the decks for the Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) to initiate the process to issue new banking licences and widened the window for infusion of capital into the banking sector.
The Lok Sabha cleared the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2011, after Finance Minister P Chidambaram agreed to drop the contentious proposal on allowing banks to do futures trading. He also clarified status quo would be maintained on the jurisdictions of RBI and the Competition Commission of India ( CCI) in the banking sector.
“Since it is important that the Bill is passed, I am dropping the controversial clauses.” While the central bank would regulate the banking sector, the competition watchdog would look at anti-competitive practices, Chidambaram said.
Most provisions in the Bill are to strengthen RBI. In Parliamentary democracy, give and take was required and rest of the Bill was important as RBI was awaiting more powers, the finance minister added.
Changes to the Bill would pave the way for RBI to issue new bank licences. The central bank had been insisting the enabling legislation be put in place before applications were invited for new bank licences.
As the Bill has provisions to increase investors’ voting rights in private banks to 26 per cent from the current 10 per cent, it is expected to bring in more foreign investment in the banking sector. In case of public sector banks, voting rights have been enhanced from one per cent to 10 per cent.
The Bill was passed by voice vote after the amendments proposed by the Left parties were rejected by the House. The Bill would now be taken up in the Rajya Sabha.
The insurance Bill, which seeks to raise the cap on foreign direct investment in insurance firms to 49 per cent from the present 26 per cent, would not be taken up for consideration in the ongoing session of Parliament, Chidambaram told reporters after the passage of the Banking Bill.
Earlier, during the discussion on the Banking Bill, he highlighted the need for consolidation in the banking sector so that India could have two- three large public sector banks that could compete globally.
He also said about 6,000 new bank branches would be opened and that banks planned to recruit around 84,000 people this year. He reiterated the government was committed to infusing Rs 15,000 crore into public sector banks in the current financial year and more next year. Capital might be infused now through rights issues and bonus shares.
Earlier, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yashwant Sinha, who heads the standing committee on finance, had opposed the two contentious clauses in the Banking Bill, saying those were not considered by his panel. He had said the provisions would allow banks to put their money in speculative trading.
The Lok Sabha cleared the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2011, after Finance Minister P Chidambaram agreed to drop the contentious proposal on allowing banks to do futures trading. He also clarified status quo would be maintained on the jurisdictions of RBI and the Competition Commission of India ( CCI) in the banking sector.
“Since it is important that the Bill is passed, I am dropping the controversial clauses.” While the central bank would regulate the banking sector, the competition watchdog would look at anti-competitive practices, Chidambaram said.
Most provisions in the Bill are to strengthen RBI. In Parliamentary democracy, give and take was required and rest of the Bill was important as RBI was awaiting more powers, the finance minister added.
Changes to the Bill would pave the way for RBI to issue new bank licences. The central bank had been insisting the enabling legislation be put in place before applications were invited for new bank licences.
As the Bill has provisions to increase investors’ voting rights in private banks to 26 per cent from the current 10 per cent, it is expected to bring in more foreign investment in the banking sector. In case of public sector banks, voting rights have been enhanced from one per cent to 10 per cent.
The Bill was passed by voice vote after the amendments proposed by the Left parties were rejected by the House. The Bill would now be taken up in the Rajya Sabha.
The insurance Bill, which seeks to raise the cap on foreign direct investment in insurance firms to 49 per cent from the present 26 per cent, would not be taken up for consideration in the ongoing session of Parliament, Chidambaram told reporters after the passage of the Banking Bill.
Earlier, during the discussion on the Banking Bill, he highlighted the need for consolidation in the banking sector so that India could have two- three large public sector banks that could compete globally.
He also said about 6,000 new bank branches would be opened and that banks planned to recruit around 84,000 people this year. He reiterated the government was committed to infusing Rs 15,000 crore into public sector banks in the current financial year and more next year. Capital might be infused now through rights issues and bonus shares.
Earlier, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yashwant Sinha, who heads the standing committee on finance, had opposed the two contentious clauses in the Banking Bill, saying those were not considered by his panel. He had said the provisions would allow banks to put their money in speculative trading.
India-Asean Trade to Reach $100 Billion Mark by 2015, Says Anand Sharma
New Delhi: Inaugurating the 2nd India- ASEAN Business Fair- 2012 in New Delhi today, the Union Minister for Commerce, Industry & Textiles Shri Anand Sharma expressed confidence that the two-way trade between India and the ASEAN countries “will be able to reach USD 100 billion mark by 2015”. He also added that the early operationalisation of the Services and Investment Agreement would provide greater impetus to the trade and investment flows.
Welcoming the Trade Minister from the ASEAN countries, Shri Sharma urged the Trade Ministers that they should diversify the trade basket and that the economic gains on both sides would be substantial only if we develop supply chains with a focus on intra-industry trade. He also said that in order to realise the true potential of the economies, we should give a concerted push to strengthen the regional connectivity with ASEAN.
Shri Sharma said that India views its partnership with ASEAN as a crucial block in sustaining the growth momentum. “We would like to benefit from ASEAN experience in key sectors of economy such as infrastructure, agro-processing, retail and value added manufacturing. Equally, Indian companies can be invaluable partners for ASEAN economies in augmenting their productivity,” said Shri Sharma.
Speaking on Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, Shri Sharma said that the negotiations would be a momentous step. “The fruition of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership which will have in its embrace ASEAN and the six countries including India, China, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Japan and Australia, will truly have a defining influence on the global economic architecture,” Shri Sharma further added.
Later addressing media persons, Shri Sharma said that the FTA negotiations on Services and Investment would be concluded by tomorrow when ASEAN Ministerial will take place after the formal negotiations. “The senior officers have been meeting and we the Ministers have given them a very clear message and mandate at the recent ASEAN-India summit at Phnom Penh in Cambodia and senior officials and negotiators thereafter met in Jakarta… So the final round of negotiations is taking place between the senior officers of India, the Chief negotiator and his team and the ASEAN officials, and they will be formally reporting to the Ministerial meeting tomorrow. And the Ministers are committed. I can say for all of us to bring this negotiations to closure and carry on with our journey of partnership, added Shri Sharma.
Welcoming the Trade Minister from the ASEAN countries, Shri Sharma urged the Trade Ministers that they should diversify the trade basket and that the economic gains on both sides would be substantial only if we develop supply chains with a focus on intra-industry trade. He also said that in order to realise the true potential of the economies, we should give a concerted push to strengthen the regional connectivity with ASEAN.
Shri Sharma said that India views its partnership with ASEAN as a crucial block in sustaining the growth momentum. “We would like to benefit from ASEAN experience in key sectors of economy such as infrastructure, agro-processing, retail and value added manufacturing. Equally, Indian companies can be invaluable partners for ASEAN economies in augmenting their productivity,” said Shri Sharma.
Speaking on Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, Shri Sharma said that the negotiations would be a momentous step. “The fruition of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership which will have in its embrace ASEAN and the six countries including India, China, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Japan and Australia, will truly have a defining influence on the global economic architecture,” Shri Sharma further added.
Later addressing media persons, Shri Sharma said that the FTA negotiations on Services and Investment would be concluded by tomorrow when ASEAN Ministerial will take place after the formal negotiations. “The senior officers have been meeting and we the Ministers have given them a very clear message and mandate at the recent ASEAN-India summit at Phnom Penh in Cambodia and senior officials and negotiators thereafter met in Jakarta… So the final round of negotiations is taking place between the senior officers of India, the Chief negotiator and his team and the ASEAN officials, and they will be formally reporting to the Ministerial meeting tomorrow. And the Ministers are committed. I can say for all of us to bring this negotiations to closure and carry on with our journey of partnership, added Shri Sharma.
Temasek to put in Rs 572 cr for second Godrej investment
Mumbai: Making its second investment in the Godrej Group, Singapore-government owned sovereign fund Temasek has entered into an agreement to acquire a 19.99 per cent stake in Godrej Agrovet Limited (GAVL), a subsidiary of Godrej Industries Limited (GIL), for Rs 572 crore.
In January this year, Temasek had acquired 4.9 per cent stake in Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) for Rs 685 crore through its wholly owned subsidiary, Baytree. Baytree had bought 16.7 million shares in GCPL at Rs 410 a share.
On Monday, shares of Godrej Industries went down 0.60 per cent to close at Rs 308.15 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The investment will be a combination of primary and secondary investment, with the primary investment intended to support GAVL’s future expansion plans, said a company statement.
The Rs 2,460-crore Godrej Agrovet Limited is a leading manufacturer of agriculture and poultry-based products, with well-known brands such as Real Good Chicken and Yummiez. Godrej Agrovet has 45 manufacturing facilities, a network of over 10,000 rural distributors and over 2,000 employees across the country.
The poultry division has joined hands with Tyson Foods, a US-based leading meat processor and marketer.
Nadir Godrej, chairman of GAVL, said: “We welcome Temasek as a partner. We believe that their global credentials, knowledge of agribusiness and excellent track record will be beneficial to GAVL. Indian agriculture is at an inflection point and with GAVL’s focus on R&D and operational excellence, we believe that the future looks very bright for the business.”
In the past five years, Indian agriculture sector saw 35 private equity/venture capital deals, worth $356 million.
Earlier, Rohit Sipahimalani, head of Temasek India, had said that the Indian consumption story remained intact and the Singapore firm is keen on the space. Temasek's major portfolio companies in India include Bharti Airtel, Tata Sky, NSE, GMR Energy and Tata Teleservices.
In January this year, Temasek had acquired 4.9 per cent stake in Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) for Rs 685 crore through its wholly owned subsidiary, Baytree. Baytree had bought 16.7 million shares in GCPL at Rs 410 a share.
On Monday, shares of Godrej Industries went down 0.60 per cent to close at Rs 308.15 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The investment will be a combination of primary and secondary investment, with the primary investment intended to support GAVL’s future expansion plans, said a company statement.
The Rs 2,460-crore Godrej Agrovet Limited is a leading manufacturer of agriculture and poultry-based products, with well-known brands such as Real Good Chicken and Yummiez. Godrej Agrovet has 45 manufacturing facilities, a network of over 10,000 rural distributors and over 2,000 employees across the country.
The poultry division has joined hands with Tyson Foods, a US-based leading meat processor and marketer.
Nadir Godrej, chairman of GAVL, said: “We welcome Temasek as a partner. We believe that their global credentials, knowledge of agribusiness and excellent track record will be beneficial to GAVL. Indian agriculture is at an inflection point and with GAVL’s focus on R&D and operational excellence, we believe that the future looks very bright for the business.”
In the past five years, Indian agriculture sector saw 35 private equity/venture capital deals, worth $356 million.
Earlier, Rohit Sipahimalani, head of Temasek India, had said that the Indian consumption story remained intact and the Singapore firm is keen on the space. Temasek's major portfolio companies in India include Bharti Airtel, Tata Sky, NSE, GMR Energy and Tata Teleservices.
Gujarat pharma SMEs bet on Africa, LatAm for exports
Ahmedabad: With an eye on higher margins, Gujarat-based small and medium-sized pharmaceutical manufacturers are focusing on export markets, especially emerging economies such as African and Latin American nations.
While overall exports from pharma SMEs are growing by 12-15 per cent a year, exports to these markets are clocking a compound annual growth rate of 30-35 per cent, say industry insiders.
SMEs based in Gujarat exported pharma products worth Rs 400-500 crore in 2011-12. The figure is expected to grow by 15 per cent this year. Of the net exports by SMEs, the share of emerging markets is 50-60 per cent, and it is rising yearly by 30-35 per cent, said a senior official of the Gujarat chapter of the Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association.
Export markets offer better margins than domestic sales, said V Shah of Saga Laboratories, which exports oral dosage forms to countries in Africa, Latin America and the Commonwealth of Independent States. Emerging markets are becoming popular export destinations because they are relatively easier to penetrate.
Mahendra G Patel, managing director, Lincoln Pharmaceuticals, said: “Regulatory documentation work is relatively less in these countries. For small and mid-sized companies which do not have adequate infrastructure to meet the European Union or United States Food and Drugs Administration standards, countries in Africa and Latin America offer good business opportunities. The regulatory authorities are liberal and the organised sector is not well developed.”
While authorities from these countries do conduct site inspections of manufacturing facilities, getting approvals is much easier compared to regulated markets, he said.
The average cost of clinical trials to generate safety-related data required by a particular country for a specific drug is in the range of Rs 3-5 crore. This is in addition to the cost of development of the drug, as well as overhead costs.
After tasting success in export markets, Saga Laboratories reduced its focus on domestic sales. “When we had started in 1994, the proportion of domestic sales was 90-95 per cent of our net turnover. Gradually, this share has come down, and exports started rising. At the moment, we are exporting our entire production,” Shah explained.
He further added that the domestic market is cost-competitive, and margins are lower. In comparison, while exporters need to make greater investments in plant and machinery to ensure that quality parameters are met, the returns are also higher, he claimed.
Saga Laboratories has already received approval from the Gujarat State Food and Drugs Control Administration to set up a new formulations plant at its Changodar site near Ahmedabad.
Yash Medicare, another Ahmedabad-based firm, which makes generic formulations, and currently supplies countries like Mozambique, Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, has registered its products in South East Asian geographies like Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Myanmar recently.
“We are expecting to get our first orders from these new geographies by January-February,” said Chirag Doshi, managing director of Yash Medicare.
His company is adding two new lines at its Himmatnagar facility to make pharmaceutical aerosol, a spray-based skin application. “For the new product, we will focus on the export market. We expect this new product range to contribute around Rs 1.5 crore towards our turnover. Our turnover is around Rs 8.5 crore at present,” Doshi explained.
Doshi, who is a senior IDMA official as well, added that there are around 125 units in the state that are World Health Organisation-Good Manufacturing Practices certified.
While overall exports from pharma SMEs are growing by 12-15 per cent a year, exports to these markets are clocking a compound annual growth rate of 30-35 per cent, say industry insiders.
SMEs based in Gujarat exported pharma products worth Rs 400-500 crore in 2011-12. The figure is expected to grow by 15 per cent this year. Of the net exports by SMEs, the share of emerging markets is 50-60 per cent, and it is rising yearly by 30-35 per cent, said a senior official of the Gujarat chapter of the Indian Drug Manufacturers’ Association.
Export markets offer better margins than domestic sales, said V Shah of Saga Laboratories, which exports oral dosage forms to countries in Africa, Latin America and the Commonwealth of Independent States. Emerging markets are becoming popular export destinations because they are relatively easier to penetrate.
Mahendra G Patel, managing director, Lincoln Pharmaceuticals, said: “Regulatory documentation work is relatively less in these countries. For small and mid-sized companies which do not have adequate infrastructure to meet the European Union or United States Food and Drugs Administration standards, countries in Africa and Latin America offer good business opportunities. The regulatory authorities are liberal and the organised sector is not well developed.”
While authorities from these countries do conduct site inspections of manufacturing facilities, getting approvals is much easier compared to regulated markets, he said.
The average cost of clinical trials to generate safety-related data required by a particular country for a specific drug is in the range of Rs 3-5 crore. This is in addition to the cost of development of the drug, as well as overhead costs.
After tasting success in export markets, Saga Laboratories reduced its focus on domestic sales. “When we had started in 1994, the proportion of domestic sales was 90-95 per cent of our net turnover. Gradually, this share has come down, and exports started rising. At the moment, we are exporting our entire production,” Shah explained.
He further added that the domestic market is cost-competitive, and margins are lower. In comparison, while exporters need to make greater investments in plant and machinery to ensure that quality parameters are met, the returns are also higher, he claimed.
Saga Laboratories has already received approval from the Gujarat State Food and Drugs Control Administration to set up a new formulations plant at its Changodar site near Ahmedabad.
Yash Medicare, another Ahmedabad-based firm, which makes generic formulations, and currently supplies countries like Mozambique, Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, has registered its products in South East Asian geographies like Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Myanmar recently.
“We are expecting to get our first orders from these new geographies by January-February,” said Chirag Doshi, managing director of Yash Medicare.
His company is adding two new lines at its Himmatnagar facility to make pharmaceutical aerosol, a spray-based skin application. “For the new product, we will focus on the export market. We expect this new product range to contribute around Rs 1.5 crore towards our turnover. Our turnover is around Rs 8.5 crore at present,” Doshi explained.
Doshi, who is a senior IDMA official as well, added that there are around 125 units in the state that are World Health Organisation-Good Manufacturing Practices certified.
JSW Steel signs technology agreement with Japan's JFE to make electrical steels
Kolkata: JSW Steel, one of the county's largest private steel producers and Japan's JFE Steel Corporation have signed a joint agreement where JFE will provide technology for the production of non-oriented electrical steel sheets (CRNGO) at the JSW Steel's Vijayanagar plant in Karnataka.
By leveraging JFE Steel's well-established manufacturing technology for electrical steel, JSW will produce CRNGO grade electrical steel and supply to its customers, including local companies as well as Japanese, European and US-affiliated companies doing business in India.
The electrical steel sheet products are primarily imported in India due to technological constraints and JSW Steel shall be in a position to cater to fast growing consumer and industrial applications market.
JSW Steel plans to start up its new annealing and coating line for electrical steel sheets in latter half of 2014. The initial annual output is projected to be 200,000 tonnes, which will be increased to 0.6 million tons per year in phases.
The company will also take sight on the production of Cold Rolled Grain Oriented (CRGO) grade in future. To be implemented in phased manner, JSW hopes the move will enable it to emerge as the largest producer of electrical steels in the country.
By leveraging JFE Steel's well-established manufacturing technology for electrical steel, JSW will produce CRNGO grade electrical steel and supply to its customers, including local companies as well as Japanese, European and US-affiliated companies doing business in India.
The electrical steel sheet products are primarily imported in India due to technological constraints and JSW Steel shall be in a position to cater to fast growing consumer and industrial applications market.
JSW Steel plans to start up its new annealing and coating line for electrical steel sheets in latter half of 2014. The initial annual output is projected to be 200,000 tonnes, which will be increased to 0.6 million tons per year in phases.
The company will also take sight on the production of Cold Rolled Grain Oriented (CRGO) grade in future. To be implemented in phased manner, JSW hopes the move will enable it to emerge as the largest producer of electrical steels in the country.
Government to Develop 54 Cities as Solar Cities
New Delhi: The Minister of New and Renewable Energy, DR. Farooq Abdullah informed Rajya Sabha today that in-Principle, approval has been given to 54 cities for developing as Solar Cities.
The draft Master Plans have been prepared for 28 cities, out of which 8 Master Plans have been approved by his Ministry for implementation. So far, an amount of Rs.19.23 crore has been sanctioned for preparation of Master Plans, Solar City Cells and Promotional Activities for 41 cities, out of which Rs. 4.22 crore has been released. Further, an amount of Rs.11.98 crore has been sanctioned for execution of renewable energy projects in 5 cities, out of which Rs.3.87 crore has been released. The minister further informed that the criteria set by the Ministry for the identification of cities include a city population between 50,000 to 50 lakh (with relaxation given to special category States including North-East States), initiatives and regulatory measures already taken along with a high level of commitment in promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy.
So far, an amount of Rs.19.23 crore has been sanctioned for preparation of Master Plans, Solar City Cells and Promotional Activities for 41 cities, out of which Rs. 4.22 crore has been released. Further, an amount of Rs.11.98 crore has been sanctioned for execution of renewable energy projects in 5 cities, out of which Rs.3.87 crore has been released for utilization by the concerned State Nodal Agencies/ Municipal Corporations.
So far, the Master Plans for 8 cities namely Agra, Moradabad from Uttar Pradesh, Thane &Kalyan-Dombivli from Maharashtra, Indore from Madhya Pradesh, Kohima from Nagaland, Aizawl from Mizoramand Chandigarh have been finalized and the development of projects is in progress.
The draft Master Plans have been prepared for 28 cities, out of which 8 Master Plans have been approved by his Ministry for implementation. So far, an amount of Rs.19.23 crore has been sanctioned for preparation of Master Plans, Solar City Cells and Promotional Activities for 41 cities, out of which Rs. 4.22 crore has been released. Further, an amount of Rs.11.98 crore has been sanctioned for execution of renewable energy projects in 5 cities, out of which Rs.3.87 crore has been released. The minister further informed that the criteria set by the Ministry for the identification of cities include a city population between 50,000 to 50 lakh (with relaxation given to special category States including North-East States), initiatives and regulatory measures already taken along with a high level of commitment in promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy.
So far, an amount of Rs.19.23 crore has been sanctioned for preparation of Master Plans, Solar City Cells and Promotional Activities for 41 cities, out of which Rs. 4.22 crore has been released. Further, an amount of Rs.11.98 crore has been sanctioned for execution of renewable energy projects in 5 cities, out of which Rs.3.87 crore has been released for utilization by the concerned State Nodal Agencies/ Municipal Corporations.
So far, the Master Plans for 8 cities namely Agra, Moradabad from Uttar Pradesh, Thane &Kalyan-Dombivli from Maharashtra, Indore from Madhya Pradesh, Kohima from Nagaland, Aizawl from Mizoramand Chandigarh have been finalized and the development of projects is in progress.
India and Malaysia Agrees to Strengthen, Cooperation in Renewable Energies
New Delhi: The Minister of New and Renewable Energy, DR. Farooq Abdullah informed Rajya Sabha today that India and Malaysia have agreed to strengthen, promote cooperation in renewable energies between the two countries and to take necessary steps to encourage their development for mutual benefits.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the field of Renewable Energy was signed between the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India and the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water, Government of Malaysia on 7th November, 2012 in New Delhi. The two countries intend to form a Joint Working Group in order to coordinate in renewable energy through joint research or technical projects on subjects of mutual interest, exchange and training of scientific and technical personnel, exchange of available scientific and technological information and data, organization of workshops, seminars and working groups, transfer of know-how, technology and equipment, on non-commercial basis.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the field of Renewable Energy was signed between the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India and the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water, Government of Malaysia on 7th November, 2012 in New Delhi. The two countries intend to form a Joint Working Group in order to coordinate in renewable energy through joint research or technical projects on subjects of mutual interest, exchange and training of scientific and technical personnel, exchange of available scientific and technological information and data, organization of workshops, seminars and working groups, transfer of know-how, technology and equipment, on non-commercial basis.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Fortis Intl to sell Dental Corp stake to UK’s Bupa for A$270 million
New Delhi: Fortis Healthcare International, a subsidiary of Fortis Healthcare, is to sell its 64 per cent stake in Dental Corporation Holdings Ltd, Australia, to UK’s healthcare major, Bupa.
The deal, which is expected to be completed in March, was made for 270 million Australian dollars (around Rs 1,500 crore). Fortis had bought the shares of DCH in two separate deals, worth a total of about A$200.
The Executive Chairman and Executive Vice-Chairman of Fortis Healthcare, Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh, said in a release that the move is “good” for Fortis.
“We are decisive in our response and bold in our actions,” the brothers said, and added that the decision will help the company to consolidate its presence as one of the fastest growing healthcare companies in the region.
Fortis bought 25.6 per cent shares of DCH in January 2011. The company said it had added “considerable value” to the business, growing its dental practices from 140 to 190 in Australia and New Zealand.
“The model however has remained confined to the two countries and in spite of exploration and backing has found limited acceptance in other Fortis geographies, as originally envisaged,” the release added.
Fortis Healthcare Ltd’s businesses span diagnostics, primary care, day-care specialty centres, and hospitals. Apart from India, it has presence in Australia, Canada, the UAE, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Nepal, New Zealand, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
The deal, which is expected to be completed in March, was made for 270 million Australian dollars (around Rs 1,500 crore). Fortis had bought the shares of DCH in two separate deals, worth a total of about A$200.
The Executive Chairman and Executive Vice-Chairman of Fortis Healthcare, Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh, said in a release that the move is “good” for Fortis.
“We are decisive in our response and bold in our actions,” the brothers said, and added that the decision will help the company to consolidate its presence as one of the fastest growing healthcare companies in the region.
Fortis bought 25.6 per cent shares of DCH in January 2011. The company said it had added “considerable value” to the business, growing its dental practices from 140 to 190 in Australia and New Zealand.
“The model however has remained confined to the two countries and in spite of exploration and backing has found limited acceptance in other Fortis geographies, as originally envisaged,” the release added.
Fortis Healthcare Ltd’s businesses span diagnostics, primary care, day-care specialty centres, and hospitals. Apart from India, it has presence in Australia, Canada, the UAE, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Nepal, New Zealand, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
Jetking Infotrain to expand into overseas market
Hyderabad: Computer education firm Jetking Infotrain is making a foray into the overseas computer hardware training market, with plans to open centres in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and Nigeria next fiscal.
The institute, which has 100 centres across India, a majority of which is franchise-run, currently has a small presence in Vietnam with two centres.
“We will start with a 500-capacity centre each in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, while the Nigerian outlet will have a 1,000-student capacity. We will be opening these centres through tie-ups with local partners,” Suresh G. Bharwani, Chairman and Managing Director, told Business Line.
Jetking, which has so far trained six lakh students in India, trains about 30,000 students in different computer hardware and networking fields.
“Last year, 50 per cent of the students had got immediate placements, including in top IT companies, with a minimum entry-level monthly salary of between Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000,” he said.
The BSE-listed firm is tying up with the National Skill Development Council to implement a five-year programme involving vocational education through 400 centres. The council has agreed to fund about Rs 80 crore for the project.
The institute, which has 100 centres across India, a majority of which is franchise-run, currently has a small presence in Vietnam with two centres.
“We will start with a 500-capacity centre each in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, while the Nigerian outlet will have a 1,000-student capacity. We will be opening these centres through tie-ups with local partners,” Suresh G. Bharwani, Chairman and Managing Director, told Business Line.
Jetking, which has so far trained six lakh students in India, trains about 30,000 students in different computer hardware and networking fields.
“Last year, 50 per cent of the students had got immediate placements, including in top IT companies, with a minimum entry-level monthly salary of between Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000,” he said.
The BSE-listed firm is tying up with the National Skill Development Council to implement a five-year programme involving vocational education through 400 centres. The council has agreed to fund about Rs 80 crore for the project.
Corporate profits expected to grow at a healthy pace during second half of 2012-13
Chennai: Corporate profit is expected to remain strong at 30.3% for the December quarter and at 15.5% for the March 2013 quarter. "However, the high level of growth achieved in the September quarter will not be sustained.
Corporate profits shot up in the second quarter due to the announcement of the cumulative oil subsidy for the April-September quarter by the government and forex gains made by companies on their short term foreign exchange liabilities consequent to the appreciation of the rupee. Also, the low base of last year made the profit growth look impressive," CMIE ( Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy) said in its November review.
Moving forward, growth in profits is expected to be led by moderation in input prices, reduction in forex losses and announcement of oil subsidies by the government on a regular basis. "Receipt of Rs 20,000 crore oil subsidies, flat crude oil prices and lower forex losses compared to the year-ago quarter are expected to help the petroleum products industry report a 10% growth in profits during the quarter," CMIE said.
And with the manufacturing sector procuring imported raw materials one to two months in advance, the positive impact of the rupee appreciation is expected to be visible on the raw material expenses of manufacturing companies during the third quarter.
Corporate profits shot up in the second quarter due to the announcement of the cumulative oil subsidy for the April-September quarter by the government and forex gains made by companies on their short term foreign exchange liabilities consequent to the appreciation of the rupee. Also, the low base of last year made the profit growth look impressive," CMIE ( Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy) said in its November review.
Moving forward, growth in profits is expected to be led by moderation in input prices, reduction in forex losses and announcement of oil subsidies by the government on a regular basis. "Receipt of Rs 20,000 crore oil subsidies, flat crude oil prices and lower forex losses compared to the year-ago quarter are expected to help the petroleum products industry report a 10% growth in profits during the quarter," CMIE said.
And with the manufacturing sector procuring imported raw materials one to two months in advance, the positive impact of the rupee appreciation is expected to be visible on the raw material expenses of manufacturing companies during the third quarter.
Private equity and M&A deals in November increases by 5 times to $10.1 billion: Grant Thornton India
Mumbai: With the improvement in sentiments in markets, there is a strong wave of value buying in the private equity and mergers and acquisitions part of the markets. In November this, there has been considerable improvement in the total value of private equity and mergers and acquisition deals.
According to a study by Grant Thornton India, the total value of private equity and mergers and acquisitions deals in November increased by five times to US$ 10.1 billion from US$ 1.9 billion in the same month last year.
This is a good sign for investors who have been circumspective about investing in markets. Since, private equity players are one of the early strategic investors, which identify value investments in the markets.
According to the study by the advisory firm, in November this year, in terms of mergers and acquisitions, even though the number of inbound deals-foreign companies or their subsidiaries acquiring Indian businesses, has come down (to 12 deals from 16 deals, year on year), the total value of inbound deals has risen considerably.
The total value of inbound deals trebled to US$2.1 billion in November this year. Interestingly, the number of outbound deals-Indian companies acquiring businesses outside India and their total value, in November this year, showed remarkable improvement in November this year.
In November, the number of outbound deals shot up to 15 deals from 10 and its total value rose to US$6.7 billion from US$1.9 billion in the same month last year.
As regards, private equity deals, the total value of private equity deals in November this year, rose to US$39 billion from US$0.4 billion in November last year, indicating that private equity players are preferring concentrated exposure to their value investments.
In terms of sectors, around 52% of total value of mergers and acquisitions deals came from Oil & Gas sector, followed by Breweries & Distilleries (22%), and Plastics & Chemicals (11%), while the remaining value of the mergers and acquisitions came from Pharma, healthcare & Biotech and Banking and Financial services.
According to a study by Grant Thornton India, the total value of private equity and mergers and acquisitions deals in November increased by five times to US$ 10.1 billion from US$ 1.9 billion in the same month last year.
This is a good sign for investors who have been circumspective about investing in markets. Since, private equity players are one of the early strategic investors, which identify value investments in the markets.
According to the study by the advisory firm, in November this year, in terms of mergers and acquisitions, even though the number of inbound deals-foreign companies or their subsidiaries acquiring Indian businesses, has come down (to 12 deals from 16 deals, year on year), the total value of inbound deals has risen considerably.
The total value of inbound deals trebled to US$2.1 billion in November this year. Interestingly, the number of outbound deals-Indian companies acquiring businesses outside India and their total value, in November this year, showed remarkable improvement in November this year.
In November, the number of outbound deals shot up to 15 deals from 10 and its total value rose to US$6.7 billion from US$1.9 billion in the same month last year.
As regards, private equity deals, the total value of private equity deals in November this year, rose to US$39 billion from US$0.4 billion in November last year, indicating that private equity players are preferring concentrated exposure to their value investments.
In terms of sectors, around 52% of total value of mergers and acquisitions deals came from Oil & Gas sector, followed by Breweries & Distilleries (22%), and Plastics & Chemicals (11%), while the remaining value of the mergers and acquisitions came from Pharma, healthcare & Biotech and Banking and Financial services.
India-Asean pact on services, investments likely early next year: Malaysian Minister
Hyderabad: The India-Asean agreement on services and investments is likely to be concluded by early next year paving the way for further co-operation, according to Mustapa Mohamed, Malaysian Minister for Trade and Industry.
"The talks are at an advanced stage including at Djakarta and we hope the agreement will be concluded early next year. In fact, it was expected to be reached last year," he said.
The Association of South East Asia Nations hope this will open up opportunities and strengthen the earlier agreement signed on trade.
Speaking to newspersons, he hoped that the Malaysia India trade will top $15 billion (US) by 2015, up from $12.5 billion recorded during 2011. About 51 per cent of Malaysian exports comprise manufactured products such as electrical and electronic.
A high-powered Malaysian delegation is on India tour interacting with industries, State and Central Government representatives seeking to further strengthen the trade ties. Malaysia is keen to attract Indian small and medium-sized businesses to locate their bases and expand trade in the region.
He felt that India with a population of about 1.2 billion and ASEAN with 600 million, the opportunities abound.
The Trade Minister said that a Malaysian company has made big inroads into the mono-rail opportunity in India with its first project in Mumbai and two projects in Brazil. It is in talks with several major cities including Kolkata for setting up mono rail networks, he said.
Referring to infrastructure opportunity, he said Malaysia is engaged with development of about 1,000 km of road network in India and is keen to play a role in other infrastructure projects, housing sector and MRO facilities.
Male Issue
Referring to the Male airport issue, he said, "The Malaysian Government would negotiate with the Maldives counterpart on the [Male airport] issue. Being a partner for the airport project with GMR, we have been affected. I believe Governments should respect contracts. However, we hope they (Maldives Government) would compensate us for the loss."
"The talks are at an advanced stage including at Djakarta and we hope the agreement will be concluded early next year. In fact, it was expected to be reached last year," he said.
The Association of South East Asia Nations hope this will open up opportunities and strengthen the earlier agreement signed on trade.
Speaking to newspersons, he hoped that the Malaysia India trade will top $15 billion (US) by 2015, up from $12.5 billion recorded during 2011. About 51 per cent of Malaysian exports comprise manufactured products such as electrical and electronic.
A high-powered Malaysian delegation is on India tour interacting with industries, State and Central Government representatives seeking to further strengthen the trade ties. Malaysia is keen to attract Indian small and medium-sized businesses to locate their bases and expand trade in the region.
He felt that India with a population of about 1.2 billion and ASEAN with 600 million, the opportunities abound.
The Trade Minister said that a Malaysian company has made big inroads into the mono-rail opportunity in India with its first project in Mumbai and two projects in Brazil. It is in talks with several major cities including Kolkata for setting up mono rail networks, he said.
Referring to infrastructure opportunity, he said Malaysia is engaged with development of about 1,000 km of road network in India and is keen to play a role in other infrastructure projects, housing sector and MRO facilities.
Male Issue
Referring to the Male airport issue, he said, "The Malaysian Government would negotiate with the Maldives counterpart on the [Male airport] issue. Being a partner for the airport project with GMR, we have been affected. I believe Governments should respect contracts. However, we hope they (Maldives Government) would compensate us for the loss."
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Hitachi to invest Rs 4,700 cr over 3 years to fortify presence
New Delhi: Japanese major Hitachi plans to invest Rs 4,700 crore in India to set up new manufacturing plants, acquisitions and strengthening collaboration with Indian companies by fiscal 2015.
Hiroaki Nakanishi President Hitachi said, “We expect to nearly triple our consolidated revenues to Rs 200 billion (Rs 20,000 crore) from the current Rs 67 billion (Rs 6,700 crore) by the fiscal year 2015. We will increase our employee strength from about 6,800 to 13,000 in this period.” He said that the company is eyeing acquisitions in social infrastructure and engineering services, but did not give any specific details.
Nakanishi was in India for the company’s first board meeting held outside Japan indicating the importance of the Indian market.
“Slowdown of economy is not only happening in India, it is a global issue. We have to manage business between this. We do not change the priority or investment decisions in the current scenario of the Indian economy,” he said though adding that the company is facing challenges such as differences between Union and State Government policies as well as slower pace of growth than the company’s expectations. The company, for instance, had to adjust output of auto components due to the slowdown in vehicle sales.
“We plan to use India as a base for expanding business into Africa and West Asia ,” he added. This will be largely for the construction machinery and the infrastructure systems.
Local production
The company will focus on expanding its businesses for local production for the domestic market through increasing localisation.
It will expand manufacturing and sales of power electronics products made by Hi-Rel Power Electronics and Hitachi NeST Control System besides promoting local production in its construction machinery business. Hitachi’s other plans for expansion include increasing local production of its industrial packaged air-conditioners and maintaining market share in high-end room air conditioners.
The company also plans to start a new auto components factory in Chennai besides automotive powder metal and brake factory in Neemrana.
It plans to strengthen partnership with Indian companies to expand business base in power systems such as expanding booking orders for thermal power generation systems by BGR Turbines and BGR Boilers, expand product line-up in infrastructure systems.
It also plans to accelerate expansion of storage systems and ATM as well as start up telecommunications and network system businesses through alliance with local partners besides manufacturing of electrical equipment and signal equipment for rail cars.
“We also plan to enhance the corporate function of the Hitachi group in India by expanding the R& D centre, strengthen development of research functions along with expansion of business divisions into India and initiate technology marketing research aimed at emerging markets and accelerate penetration of the Hitachi brand,” Nakanishi said.
Hiroaki Nakanishi President Hitachi said, “We expect to nearly triple our consolidated revenues to Rs 200 billion (Rs 20,000 crore) from the current Rs 67 billion (Rs 6,700 crore) by the fiscal year 2015. We will increase our employee strength from about 6,800 to 13,000 in this period.” He said that the company is eyeing acquisitions in social infrastructure and engineering services, but did not give any specific details.
Nakanishi was in India for the company’s first board meeting held outside Japan indicating the importance of the Indian market.
“Slowdown of economy is not only happening in India, it is a global issue. We have to manage business between this. We do not change the priority or investment decisions in the current scenario of the Indian economy,” he said though adding that the company is facing challenges such as differences between Union and State Government policies as well as slower pace of growth than the company’s expectations. The company, for instance, had to adjust output of auto components due to the slowdown in vehicle sales.
“We plan to use India as a base for expanding business into Africa and West Asia ,” he added. This will be largely for the construction machinery and the infrastructure systems.
Local production
The company will focus on expanding its businesses for local production for the domestic market through increasing localisation.
It will expand manufacturing and sales of power electronics products made by Hi-Rel Power Electronics and Hitachi NeST Control System besides promoting local production in its construction machinery business. Hitachi’s other plans for expansion include increasing local production of its industrial packaged air-conditioners and maintaining market share in high-end room air conditioners.
The company also plans to start a new auto components factory in Chennai besides automotive powder metal and brake factory in Neemrana.
It plans to strengthen partnership with Indian companies to expand business base in power systems such as expanding booking orders for thermal power generation systems by BGR Turbines and BGR Boilers, expand product line-up in infrastructure systems.
It also plans to accelerate expansion of storage systems and ATM as well as start up telecommunications and network system businesses through alliance with local partners besides manufacturing of electrical equipment and signal equipment for rail cars.
“We also plan to enhance the corporate function of the Hitachi group in India by expanding the R& D centre, strengthen development of research functions along with expansion of business divisions into India and initiate technology marketing research aimed at emerging markets and accelerate penetration of the Hitachi brand,” Nakanishi said.
Reliance Group, China’s Wanda to form realty JV
New Delhi: The Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group and China’s leading developer, Wanda, announced a joint venture agreement to do real estate projects in the country. This will cover integrated township projects in India, including commercial buildings and residential apartments, hotels and retail space. This is the first time a Chinese real estate company is investing in India, according to sector analysts, though some Hong Kong-based developers have funded Indian projects.
The two signed a memorandum of understanding to set up a joint venture (JV) for a strategic long-term partnership covering several areas of mutual interest, the Reliance Group said. Among the first real estate projects of the JV will be in Navi Mumbai and Hyderabad.
The 135-acre Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City in Navi Mumbai, owned by Reliance Communications, has a development potential of 10 million square feet (sq ft), subject to necessary approvals.
The Hyderabad project is an 80-acre new business district owned by Reliance Infrastructure, having an unlimited floor-space index for development for commercial and residential purposes, hotels, etc. There are plans to develop up to 10 million sq ft area here in a phased manner.
“Over the past few years, the Reliance Group has become the single largest trading partner between India and China”, said Anil Ambani. He added the company was looking to extend the strategic partnership to the Wanda Group “in a manner that will tremendously benefit both, and unlock substantial value for millions of all our stakeholders”.
Since Wanda Group is also the leading multiplex player in the world, with a little over 6,000 screens, Reliance MediaWorks will explore a possible co-operation in the multiplexes business in India and the US. Earlier this year, Wanda acquired the AMC chain in the US for $2.6 billion (Rs 14,000 crore).
The JV is expected to be signed in a few weeks. Investment figures will be revealed then.
Reliance will bring in the land parcels and Wanda its expertise in construction and development.
Experts called the tie-up with a Chinese company a good move. “India should welcome funds. China is the second-largest economy and has huge surplus to invest”, said Anshuman Magazine, CMD, CB Richard Ellis, South Asia.
Magazine said India must diversify its sources of funds. “If we can accept funds from the US, why not from China? There shouldn’t be a bias”.
Wanda Group has built 130 million sq ft properties in 66 integrated projects across 50 cities in China and 38 five-star hotels.
“Wanda is very excited about the opportunities in the Indian market,” said Wang Jianlin, chairman, Wanda Group. “By joining our strengths, we hope our cooperation will bring mutual benefits and great results,” he added.
Dalian Wanda Group was founded in 1988 and operates across commercial properties, luxury hotels, tourism investment, cultural industry, and department store chains.
Earlier this year, Ambani’s Realiance Communications borrowed $1.18 billion from China’s lenders to repay its holders of foreign bonds. Reliance Power also tied up loans of $ 1.1 billion (over Rs 6,000 crore) from three Chinese lenders for its 3,960 MW Sasan ultra mega power project in Madhya Pradesh.
The two signed a memorandum of understanding to set up a joint venture (JV) for a strategic long-term partnership covering several areas of mutual interest, the Reliance Group said. Among the first real estate projects of the JV will be in Navi Mumbai and Hyderabad.
The 135-acre Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City in Navi Mumbai, owned by Reliance Communications, has a development potential of 10 million square feet (sq ft), subject to necessary approvals.
The Hyderabad project is an 80-acre new business district owned by Reliance Infrastructure, having an unlimited floor-space index for development for commercial and residential purposes, hotels, etc. There are plans to develop up to 10 million sq ft area here in a phased manner.
“Over the past few years, the Reliance Group has become the single largest trading partner between India and China”, said Anil Ambani. He added the company was looking to extend the strategic partnership to the Wanda Group “in a manner that will tremendously benefit both, and unlock substantial value for millions of all our stakeholders”.
Since Wanda Group is also the leading multiplex player in the world, with a little over 6,000 screens, Reliance MediaWorks will explore a possible co-operation in the multiplexes business in India and the US. Earlier this year, Wanda acquired the AMC chain in the US for $2.6 billion (Rs 14,000 crore).
The JV is expected to be signed in a few weeks. Investment figures will be revealed then.
Reliance will bring in the land parcels and Wanda its expertise in construction and development.
Experts called the tie-up with a Chinese company a good move. “India should welcome funds. China is the second-largest economy and has huge surplus to invest”, said Anshuman Magazine, CMD, CB Richard Ellis, South Asia.
Magazine said India must diversify its sources of funds. “If we can accept funds from the US, why not from China? There shouldn’t be a bias”.
Wanda Group has built 130 million sq ft properties in 66 integrated projects across 50 cities in China and 38 five-star hotels.
“Wanda is very excited about the opportunities in the Indian market,” said Wang Jianlin, chairman, Wanda Group. “By joining our strengths, we hope our cooperation will bring mutual benefits and great results,” he added.
Dalian Wanda Group was founded in 1988 and operates across commercial properties, luxury hotels, tourism investment, cultural industry, and department store chains.
Earlier this year, Ambani’s Realiance Communications borrowed $1.18 billion from China’s lenders to repay its holders of foreign bonds. Reliance Power also tied up loans of $ 1.1 billion (over Rs 6,000 crore) from three Chinese lenders for its 3,960 MW Sasan ultra mega power project in Madhya Pradesh.
Kotak Capital in tie-up with Sumitomo for M&A
Mumbai: Kotak Mahindra Capital, investment banking arm of Kotak Mahindra Bank, has entered into an exclusive strategic alliance with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation ( SMBC) and SMBC Nikko Securities for cross-border merger and acquisition (M&A) advisory services between India and Japan.
SMBC acquired a 4.5 per cent stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank in 2010, through preferential allotment of shares worth Rs 1,366 crore. Kotak and SMBC had also entered an agreement for business cooperation across various businesses of mutual interest, subject to relevant regulations. Since then, both have collaborated in and are working on a number of areas such as trade, finance, treasury products, corporate customer referrals, asset management and alternate assets.
The cooperation has now been extended to investment banking to complete the bouquet of offerings for companies in India and Japan. Earlier, Kotak Mahindra Capital had an exclusive strategic cooperation agreement with GCA Savvian Corporation for M&A advisory between Indian and Japan. The firms have concluded their agreement.
With the new agreement, Kotak, SMBC and SMBC Nikko Securities aim to play an active role in the growing cross-border M&A activity between India and Japan by leveraging their combined advisory capability, knowledge of local markets and long-standing corporate relationships.
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation is the core financial institution of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, the second largest financial services group in terms of market capitalisation in Japan. SMBC Nikko is one of the largest full-service securities and investment banking firms in that country. The two companies have a combined team of 500 investment banking professionals in Japan and have advised on 90 transactions with announced deal value of $23 billion in calendar 2012.
“Japan is a priority market for cross-border M&A with India, and the growing relationship and synergies between the two countries will only continue to get stronger. We are confident through this alliance we can offer the best opportunities, advice and solutions to our clients,” said T V Raghunath, managing director and CEO of Kotak Investment Banking.
In calendar 2012, Japan ranked among the top three acquiring nations into India, and three of the 10 largest M&A transactions involving India took place in the India-Japan corridor.
Other areas of SMBC’s cooperation with Kotak Mahindra Bank is in setting up an India-focused infrastructure fund in collaboration with Canada-based Brookfield Asset Management. Shanti Ekambaram, president (corporate and investment banking) at Kotak Mahindra Bank, said fund raising is going on for this.
SMBC acquired a 4.5 per cent stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank in 2010, through preferential allotment of shares worth Rs 1,366 crore. Kotak and SMBC had also entered an agreement for business cooperation across various businesses of mutual interest, subject to relevant regulations. Since then, both have collaborated in and are working on a number of areas such as trade, finance, treasury products, corporate customer referrals, asset management and alternate assets.
The cooperation has now been extended to investment banking to complete the bouquet of offerings for companies in India and Japan. Earlier, Kotak Mahindra Capital had an exclusive strategic cooperation agreement with GCA Savvian Corporation for M&A advisory between Indian and Japan. The firms have concluded their agreement.
With the new agreement, Kotak, SMBC and SMBC Nikko Securities aim to play an active role in the growing cross-border M&A activity between India and Japan by leveraging their combined advisory capability, knowledge of local markets and long-standing corporate relationships.
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation is the core financial institution of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, the second largest financial services group in terms of market capitalisation in Japan. SMBC Nikko is one of the largest full-service securities and investment banking firms in that country. The two companies have a combined team of 500 investment banking professionals in Japan and have advised on 90 transactions with announced deal value of $23 billion in calendar 2012.
“Japan is a priority market for cross-border M&A with India, and the growing relationship and synergies between the two countries will only continue to get stronger. We are confident through this alliance we can offer the best opportunities, advice and solutions to our clients,” said T V Raghunath, managing director and CEO of Kotak Investment Banking.
In calendar 2012, Japan ranked among the top three acquiring nations into India, and three of the 10 largest M&A transactions involving India took place in the India-Japan corridor.
Other areas of SMBC’s cooperation with Kotak Mahindra Bank is in setting up an India-focused infrastructure fund in collaboration with Canada-based Brookfield Asset Management. Shanti Ekambaram, president (corporate and investment banking) at Kotak Mahindra Bank, said fund raising is going on for this.
India Inc raises $4.29 billion via ECBs, FCCBs
Mumbai: Indian companies raised $4.29 billion, through external commercial borrowings (ECBs) and foreign currency convertible bonds ( FCCBs) in October, to fund modernisation, foreign acquisitions, import of capital goods and onward lending.
This is highest since December last year. In December 2011, companies had raised $4.4 billion from the ECBs and FCCBs. The comparable figure for last month, according to Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) data, was $2.77 billion. Of the total, $2.40 billion was via automatic route while $1.89 billion was raised through the approval route, which requires case-by-case approval from RBI.
Reliance Industries Ltd alone contracted ECBs worth $1.5 billion for importing capital goods.
The loan tenure is 64 months under the approval route. October saw a number of ECBs raised by the government companies. Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum, GAIL, Indian Railways Finance Corporation and Air India were the public sector enterprises that had borrowed through ECBs.
There were two FCCB transactions recorded in the month. Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd borrowed $40 million to fund its oversees acquisition while Gujarat NRE Coke Ltd funded its local capital goods expenditure.
This is highest since December last year. In December 2011, companies had raised $4.4 billion from the ECBs and FCCBs. The comparable figure for last month, according to Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) data, was $2.77 billion. Of the total, $2.40 billion was via automatic route while $1.89 billion was raised through the approval route, which requires case-by-case approval from RBI.
Reliance Industries Ltd alone contracted ECBs worth $1.5 billion for importing capital goods.
The loan tenure is 64 months under the approval route. October saw a number of ECBs raised by the government companies. Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum, GAIL, Indian Railways Finance Corporation and Air India were the public sector enterprises that had borrowed through ECBs.
There were two FCCB transactions recorded in the month. Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd borrowed $40 million to fund its oversees acquisition while Gujarat NRE Coke Ltd funded its local capital goods expenditure.
100% FDI Permitted in Power Sector
New Delhi: The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power Shri Jyotiraditya Scindia informed Lok Sabha today that as per extant policy, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to 100% is permitted in the power sector, under the automatic route, for:
Generation and transmission of electric energy produced in hydro electric, coal/lignite based thermal, oil based thermal and gas based thermal power plants;
Non-Conventional Energy Generation and Distribution;
Distribution of elective energy to households, industrial, commercial and other users; and
Power Trading.
Accordingly, any foreign power company can enter power sector through FDI route. Further, several global power plant equipment manufacturing companies from Japan, Europe and USA have formed Joint Ventures with Indian Companies for establishing manufacturing base in India for the manufacture of supercritical boilers/turbine generators and technology transfer. The companies are Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Japan with L&T at Gujarat; Hitachi, Japan with BGR at Tamil Nadu; Toshiba, Japan with JSW at Tamil Nadu; Alstom, France with Bharat Forge at Gujarat; Ansaldo Caldie, Italy with Gammon at Tamil Nadu; Babcock & Wilcox, USA with Thermax at Maharashtra; Hitachi Power Europe GmbH (Germany) with BGR at Tamil Nadu. Doosan, Korea (100% FDI) has come to establish its manufacturing facilities on their own strength in Tamil Nadu.
Besides, CLP India Pvt. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of CLP Holdings has set up a 1320 MW thermal power project at Haryana. In addition, M/s. AES (Chhattisgarh Energy Pvt. Ltd.) proposes to setup 2x660 MW Thermal Power Project in Chhattisgarh and Odisha Power Generation Corporation Ltd. (A Joint Venture of Govt. of Odisha & AES Corp. USA) also proposes to setup a new Thermal Power Project (2x 660 MW) in Odisha.
Generation and transmission of electric energy produced in hydro electric, coal/lignite based thermal, oil based thermal and gas based thermal power plants;
Non-Conventional Energy Generation and Distribution;
Distribution of elective energy to households, industrial, commercial and other users; and
Power Trading.
Accordingly, any foreign power company can enter power sector through FDI route. Further, several global power plant equipment manufacturing companies from Japan, Europe and USA have formed Joint Ventures with Indian Companies for establishing manufacturing base in India for the manufacture of supercritical boilers/turbine generators and technology transfer. The companies are Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Japan with L&T at Gujarat; Hitachi, Japan with BGR at Tamil Nadu; Toshiba, Japan with JSW at Tamil Nadu; Alstom, France with Bharat Forge at Gujarat; Ansaldo Caldie, Italy with Gammon at Tamil Nadu; Babcock & Wilcox, USA with Thermax at Maharashtra; Hitachi Power Europe GmbH (Germany) with BGR at Tamil Nadu. Doosan, Korea (100% FDI) has come to establish its manufacturing facilities on their own strength in Tamil Nadu.
Besides, CLP India Pvt. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of CLP Holdings has set up a 1320 MW thermal power project at Haryana. In addition, M/s. AES (Chhattisgarh Energy Pvt. Ltd.) proposes to setup 2x660 MW Thermal Power Project in Chhattisgarh and Odisha Power Generation Corporation Ltd. (A Joint Venture of Govt. of Odisha & AES Corp. USA) also proposes to setup a new Thermal Power Project (2x 660 MW) in Odisha.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
KEC International gets Rs 612 cr orders
Coimbatore: KEC International Ltd belonging to the RPG Group has secured new orders worth Rs 612 crore in transmission, power systems, cables and water businesses.
Bulk of the orders was for transmission business both within and outside the country. It has got an order for Rs 210 crore from Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd for erection of single circuit transmission lines between Meerut in Uttar Pradesh and Monga in Punjab on turnkey basis. KEC International claimed that so far in this financial year it had nearly 28 per cent share in PGCIL’s transmission line contracts.
KECIL’s wholly owned subsidiary SAE Towers has won orders for supply of lattice towers in Brazil, Mexico and the US valued Rs 224 crore.
In Uganda, it has secured an order worth Rs 53 crore for design and construction of distribution lines.
The orders for supply of power and telecom cables were estimated to be Rs 81 crore and order for water system civil works for thermal power project of NTPC in Solapur in Maharashtra was worth Rs 44 crore.
On Monday, the KEC stock was trading up 2.73 per cent at Rs 67.85 on the BSE in morning trade.
Bulk of the orders was for transmission business both within and outside the country. It has got an order for Rs 210 crore from Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd for erection of single circuit transmission lines between Meerut in Uttar Pradesh and Monga in Punjab on turnkey basis. KEC International claimed that so far in this financial year it had nearly 28 per cent share in PGCIL’s transmission line contracts.
KECIL’s wholly owned subsidiary SAE Towers has won orders for supply of lattice towers in Brazil, Mexico and the US valued Rs 224 crore.
In Uganda, it has secured an order worth Rs 53 crore for design and construction of distribution lines.
The orders for supply of power and telecom cables were estimated to be Rs 81 crore and order for water system civil works for thermal power project of NTPC in Solapur in Maharashtra was worth Rs 44 crore.
On Monday, the KEC stock was trading up 2.73 per cent at Rs 67.85 on the BSE in morning trade.
Railway Revenue Earnings up by 19.23 Per Cent During April- November 2012
New Delhi: The total approximate earnings of Indian Railways on originating basis during 1st April to 30th November 2012 were Rs.78868.17 crore compared to Rs. 66150.48 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 19.23 per cent.
The total goods earnings have gone up from Rs. 43891.25 crore during 1st April – 30th November 2011 to Rs. 54487.10 crore during 1st April – 30th November 2012, registering an increase of 24.14 per cent.
The total passenger revenue earnings during 1st April – 30th November 2012 were Rs. 20423.31 crore compared to Rs. 18742.83 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 8.97 per cent.
The revenue earnings from other coaching amounted to Rs. 2061.30 crore during April-November 2012 compared to Rs. 1860.49 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 10.79 per cent.
The total approximate numbers of passengers booked during 1st April – 30th November 2012 were 5700.57 million compared to 5517.86 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 3.31 per cent. In the suburban and non-suburban sectors, the numbers of passengers booked during April-November 2012 were 2964.50 million and 2736.07 million compared to 2886.10 million and 2353.95 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 2.72 per cent and 3.96 per cent respectively.
The total goods earnings have gone up from Rs. 43891.25 crore during 1st April – 30th November 2011 to Rs. 54487.10 crore during 1st April – 30th November 2012, registering an increase of 24.14 per cent.
The total passenger revenue earnings during 1st April – 30th November 2012 were Rs. 20423.31 crore compared to Rs. 18742.83 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 8.97 per cent.
The revenue earnings from other coaching amounted to Rs. 2061.30 crore during April-November 2012 compared to Rs. 1860.49 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 10.79 per cent.
The total approximate numbers of passengers booked during 1st April – 30th November 2012 were 5700.57 million compared to 5517.86 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 3.31 per cent. In the suburban and non-suburban sectors, the numbers of passengers booked during April-November 2012 were 2964.50 million and 2736.07 million compared to 2886.10 million and 2353.95 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 2.72 per cent and 3.96 per cent respectively.
Coffee exports to S. Korea up five-fold
Bengaluru: South Korea has become a key market in Far-East for Indian coffee exports.
“Indian coffee exports to South Korea have seen a five-fold jump in volume in the last three years,” Jawaid Akhtar, Coffee Board Chairman, told Business Line.
Exports to South Korea is expected to cross over 2,000 tonnes in crop year 2011-12 compared with 2,051 tonnes (in value terms Rs 33.87 crore) in 2010-11. In 2009-10, exports stood at 366.1 tonnes (Rs 3.51 crore).
Korea is a market for mild coffee and India fits well due to its geographical advantage compared to South American coffee-growing countries.
Also the success of Korean big business such as Hyundai, Samsung, LG and others brands in Indian market has added to the comfort level in doing business with Indian growers.
Aktar said: “Korea is a good follow-up country for us. Exports have been steadily going up. It rose sharply ever since we took part in ‘Seoul Cafe Show’ in Korea last year and this year.”
“We want to cultivate and build this emerging market. As a step towards achieving it, we have been taking exporters along with us to showcase our diverse coffees,” he said.
This year, three Indian exporters took part in the ‘Seoul Cafe Show’ as compared to five exporters last year.
Nishant Gurjer, KPA Chairman and managing partner of Kaapi Royale Coffee and the Sethuraman Estates, who took part at the ‘Seoul Cafe Show’ said: “Korea in terms of consumption has suddenly emerged as a big importer of coffees in the last five years.”
“Ever since I started exports to Korea, I am seeing home grown café chains like ‘Caffé Bene’, ‘Angles in Us Coffee’, ‘Hollys Coffee’ and ‘Paris Baguette’ expanding. In all they have over 1,000 stores,” he added.
South Korean coffee buyer is also well aware of coffee quality which he is buying as most of them are Q-certified tasters.
According to Gurjer, Indian coffee is also getting good prices as well. Indian coffees with quality cupping taste profile and certification has got good premium for they appreciate and have tasted good quality coffees.
“Indian coffee exports to South Korea have seen a five-fold jump in volume in the last three years,” Jawaid Akhtar, Coffee Board Chairman, told Business Line.
Exports to South Korea is expected to cross over 2,000 tonnes in crop year 2011-12 compared with 2,051 tonnes (in value terms Rs 33.87 crore) in 2010-11. In 2009-10, exports stood at 366.1 tonnes (Rs 3.51 crore).
Korea is a market for mild coffee and India fits well due to its geographical advantage compared to South American coffee-growing countries.
Also the success of Korean big business such as Hyundai, Samsung, LG and others brands in Indian market has added to the comfort level in doing business with Indian growers.
Aktar said: “Korea is a good follow-up country for us. Exports have been steadily going up. It rose sharply ever since we took part in ‘Seoul Cafe Show’ in Korea last year and this year.”
“We want to cultivate and build this emerging market. As a step towards achieving it, we have been taking exporters along with us to showcase our diverse coffees,” he said.
This year, three Indian exporters took part in the ‘Seoul Cafe Show’ as compared to five exporters last year.
Nishant Gurjer, KPA Chairman and managing partner of Kaapi Royale Coffee and the Sethuraman Estates, who took part at the ‘Seoul Cafe Show’ said: “Korea in terms of consumption has suddenly emerged as a big importer of coffees in the last five years.”
“Ever since I started exports to Korea, I am seeing home grown café chains like ‘Caffé Bene’, ‘Angles in Us Coffee’, ‘Hollys Coffee’ and ‘Paris Baguette’ expanding. In all they have over 1,000 stores,” he added.
South Korean coffee buyer is also well aware of coffee quality which he is buying as most of them are Q-certified tasters.
According to Gurjer, Indian coffee is also getting good prices as well. Indian coffees with quality cupping taste profile and certification has got good premium for they appreciate and have tasted good quality coffees.
RBI eases KYC norms for banks
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) today eased the mandatory know your customer (KYC) norms for banks so that opening a bank account will be simple and hassle-free.
In a communication to banks, RBI asked them not to insist on introduction by an existing customer while opening a new account, as it is not mandatory under any rule of the central bank. If the identity proof has an address that is the same as the address on which an account is being opened, then there is no need for a separate address proof, said the RBI.
Currently, banks ask for separate documents for the identification and address verification process. But, in the case the address on the account opening form is different from the address stated in the identity proof document, then the banks should obtain a separate proof of address. The banking regulator has allowed rent agreements registered with the state government or any other registration authority as a proof of address.
The central bank has asked banks to accept Aadhaar cards, as both identity and address proof, if the address on the account opening form and Aadhaar are the same. RBI said the Unique Identification Authority of India ( UIDAI) had conveyed that banks are accepting the Aadhaar letter issued by it as a proof of identity, but not of the address.
The regulator had earlier advised banks to satisfy themselves with the current address of the customer even if he files Aadhaar as proof of identity. It also said job cards given under the rural job scheme should be accepted as a valid document to open bank accounts. Earlier, accounts opened using job cards were subject to the limitations applicable to small accounts.
In a communication to banks, RBI asked them not to insist on introduction by an existing customer while opening a new account, as it is not mandatory under any rule of the central bank. If the identity proof has an address that is the same as the address on which an account is being opened, then there is no need for a separate address proof, said the RBI.
Currently, banks ask for separate documents for the identification and address verification process. But, in the case the address on the account opening form is different from the address stated in the identity proof document, then the banks should obtain a separate proof of address. The banking regulator has allowed rent agreements registered with the state government or any other registration authority as a proof of address.
The central bank has asked banks to accept Aadhaar cards, as both identity and address proof, if the address on the account opening form and Aadhaar are the same. RBI said the Unique Identification Authority of India ( UIDAI) had conveyed that banks are accepting the Aadhaar letter issued by it as a proof of identity, but not of the address.
The regulator had earlier advised banks to satisfy themselves with the current address of the customer even if he files Aadhaar as proof of identity. It also said job cards given under the rural job scheme should be accepted as a valid document to open bank accounts. Earlier, accounts opened using job cards were subject to the limitations applicable to small accounts.
India, Ukraine sign 5 pacts to boost ties
New Delhi: India and Ukraine have agreed to forge a comprehensive partnership and have identified areas for commercial ties, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced on Monday.
Addressing the media after a meeting with visiting Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych, the Prime Minister said, “We have identified a number of areas such as fertilisers, pharmaceuticals, information technology, mining and heavy machinery for special attention.”
The Prime Minister also conveyed to Yanukovych, India’s interest in visa arrangements to facilitate travel by businessmen, professionals, students and people.
The two countries signed five documents during the visit, including an agreement on co-operation in defence. The agreement will provide the framework for expanding military technical co-operation on an institutionalised basis.
An agreement was also signed between the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspector of Ukraine for exchange of technical information and co-operation on nuclear safety and radiation protection.
The agreement envisages co-operation in some important regulatory activities including legislative regulations, safety guides and technical criteria on nuclear safety, design, construction, operation decommissioning of nuclear facilities waste management and environmental impact, among others.
Addressing the media after a meeting with visiting Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych, the Prime Minister said, “We have identified a number of areas such as fertilisers, pharmaceuticals, information technology, mining and heavy machinery for special attention.”
The Prime Minister also conveyed to Yanukovych, India’s interest in visa arrangements to facilitate travel by businessmen, professionals, students and people.
The two countries signed five documents during the visit, including an agreement on co-operation in defence. The agreement will provide the framework for expanding military technical co-operation on an institutionalised basis.
An agreement was also signed between the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspector of Ukraine for exchange of technical information and co-operation on nuclear safety and radiation protection.
The agreement envisages co-operation in some important regulatory activities including legislative regulations, safety guides and technical criteria on nuclear safety, design, construction, operation decommissioning of nuclear facilities waste management and environmental impact, among others.
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