India's specialty chemicals industry which has been growing at a steady rate over the years, has further potential to grow from the present $22 billion to $80-100 billion by 2020 as even the Indian Government is putting into place, the plans and regulations to support this growth.
Jim Buckley, UBM Live's Informex Brand Director, who is in Mumbai for the InormexIndia, opening from Wednesday by UBM, said, "According to a recent study by global consulting firm McKinsey, India's specialty chemicals industry has the potential to grow from the present $22 billion to $80-100 billion by 2020. The Indian Government is putting in place plans and regulations to support this growth."
There is a need for a long term policy and strategy to boost the industry and which shall be the focus of discussion when the global industry players meet here this week. Mr. Buckley further said that the global industry is excited to be returning to India with a specialty focused event. "Our discussions during the conference will cover the latest developments in this fertile market while acting as an international networking platform designed to cater for those involved in sourcing, R&D and top-level management."
The three-day conference and exhibition will be held from September 12th to 14th at Nehru Centre, Mumbai.
Success in my Habit
Friday, September 14, 2012
RBI eases external commercial borrowings guidelines
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday relaxed guidelines for Indian companies to raise money overseas through external commercial borrowings (ECB). The RBI allowed companies to raise more funds through ECBs to repay rupee loans or for new capital expenditure in rupees.
It raised the maximum limit of ECB to 75% of the average foreign exchange earnings in the past three fiscal years, or 50% of the highest export earnings in any of the three years, or whichever is higher.
Earlier, a company could raise a maximum of 50% of its average export earnings in the past three fiscal years.
The RBI will also allow refinancing of bridge finance, or short-term credit taken by companies in the infrastructure sector for importing capital goods, with an ECB under the automatic route. Earlier, companies had to seek approval from the RBI for replacing the bridge finance with a long-term ECB.
The central bank said companies in the infrastructure sector can seek trade credit for up to a maximum period of five years for importing capital goods, up from one-to-three years previously. Trade credit is a short-term loan. reuters
It raised the maximum limit of ECB to 75% of the average foreign exchange earnings in the past three fiscal years, or 50% of the highest export earnings in any of the three years, or whichever is higher.
Earlier, a company could raise a maximum of 50% of its average export earnings in the past three fiscal years.
The RBI will also allow refinancing of bridge finance, or short-term credit taken by companies in the infrastructure sector for importing capital goods, with an ECB under the automatic route. Earlier, companies had to seek approval from the RBI for replacing the bridge finance with a long-term ECB.
The central bank said companies in the infrastructure sector can seek trade credit for up to a maximum period of five years for importing capital goods, up from one-to-three years previously. Trade credit is a short-term loan. reuters
India-Czech Republic target bilateral trade to touch US$ 2 billion in 3 years
New Delhi: India and Czech Republic have agreed to double bilateral trade in three years to reach the level of US$ 2 billion. Both the countries have agreed to launch Joint Working Groups (JWGs) in areas of skills and innovation, heavy engineering, life sciences and pharmaceuticals, as per an official statement.
At present, the bilateral trade between the two countries stood at about US$ 1 billion.
Mr Anand Sharma, Union Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles, India met Mr M Kuba, Minister of Trade and Industry, Czech Republic and discussed measures to deepen bilateral engagement. Discussions focussed on sectors of mutual interest such as mining, auto, heavy industries, power generating equipment and technical textiles.
During his three-day visit, Mr Sharma and Mr Kuba jointly inaugurated the "India Show" in Brno, Czech Republic, at the MSV Fairground on September 10, 2012. The India Show is being organised jointly by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) India. Mr Sharma, who lead the business delegation to participate in the India Show, also called on Mr Vaclav Klaus, the Czech President and Prime Minister Mr Petr Necas.
Over 135 companies belonging primarily to India’s engineering sector are participating, showcasing their strengths and capabilities with respect to Indian products, technologies and services during this entire week. These companies represent the entire scale of India’s engineering strengths; encompassing the small, medium and the large scale sectors.
At present, the bilateral trade between the two countries stood at about US$ 1 billion.
Mr Anand Sharma, Union Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles, India met Mr M Kuba, Minister of Trade and Industry, Czech Republic and discussed measures to deepen bilateral engagement. Discussions focussed on sectors of mutual interest such as mining, auto, heavy industries, power generating equipment and technical textiles.
During his three-day visit, Mr Sharma and Mr Kuba jointly inaugurated the "India Show" in Brno, Czech Republic, at the MSV Fairground on September 10, 2012. The India Show is being organised jointly by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) India. Mr Sharma, who lead the business delegation to participate in the India Show, also called on Mr Vaclav Klaus, the Czech President and Prime Minister Mr Petr Necas.
Over 135 companies belonging primarily to India’s engineering sector are participating, showcasing their strengths and capabilities with respect to Indian products, technologies and services during this entire week. These companies represent the entire scale of India’s engineering strengths; encompassing the small, medium and the large scale sectors.
Germany's Treofan to buy Max India's Speciality Films division for Rs 540 cr
New Delhi: Analjit Singh-led Max India is selling its 25-year-old its speciality films business to Germany's Treofan for Rs 540 crore as part of a strategy to focus on services business.
"The offer from Treofan is subject to financing, a material adverse change clause, confirmatory due diligence, execution of mutually satisfactory sale and purchase agreements, management retention, formal approval from Treofan's Advisory Board and receipt of regulatory and corporate approvals," said Max India in a press release.
ET first reported the deal in April.
Max Speciality Films (MSF) division is a strategic business unit of Max India with a BOPP capacity of about 50,000 tonnes per annum (TPA). Last fiscal before the ramp-up of the new line, the unit had revenue of Rs 703 crore, a 77% growth over the previous fiscal while operating profit increased 50% to Rs 77 crore.
Analjit Singh, chairman Max India Limited said, "It was an emotional decision for me personally, but the board and management rightly decided that it made good business sense to focus on our portfolio of service oriented businesses of life."
"The offer from Treofan is subject to financing, a material adverse change clause, confirmatory due diligence, execution of mutually satisfactory sale and purchase agreements, management retention, formal approval from Treofan's Advisory Board and receipt of regulatory and corporate approvals," said Max India in a press release.
ET first reported the deal in April.
Max Speciality Films (MSF) division is a strategic business unit of Max India with a BOPP capacity of about 50,000 tonnes per annum (TPA). Last fiscal before the ramp-up of the new line, the unit had revenue of Rs 703 crore, a 77% growth over the previous fiscal while operating profit increased 50% to Rs 77 crore.
Analjit Singh, chairman Max India Limited said, "It was an emotional decision for me personally, but the board and management rightly decided that it made good business sense to focus on our portfolio of service oriented businesses of life."
Infosys BPO buys outsourcing arm of Marsh & McLennan
Bengaluru: Infosys BPO, the business process outsourcing (BPO) arm of Infosys Ltd, on Monday said it had acquired Marsh BPO, the business process outsourcing arm of the US-based Marsh & McLennan Companies, for an undisclosed amount.
The company said the acquisition would give it annualised revenue of $10-12 million.
Swaminathan D, chief executive officer and managing director of Infosys BPO, said the company aims to retain all the 87 employees of Marsh BPO, who are located in Des Moines, lowa in the US.
The company also plans to recruit 20-25 employees in Des Moines, in the next two-three months, he added.
Infosys BPO, which closed its financial year 2011-12 with a revenue of $494.5 million, employs 23,288 people.
Infosys BPO is an end-to-end outsourcing services provider, operating in the Americas, Asia Pacific, Australia and Europe.
The company said the acquisition would give it annualised revenue of $10-12 million.
Swaminathan D, chief executive officer and managing director of Infosys BPO, said the company aims to retain all the 87 employees of Marsh BPO, who are located in Des Moines, lowa in the US.
The company also plans to recruit 20-25 employees in Des Moines, in the next two-three months, he added.
Infosys BPO, which closed its financial year 2011-12 with a revenue of $494.5 million, employs 23,288 people.
Infosys BPO is an end-to-end outsourcing services provider, operating in the Americas, Asia Pacific, Australia and Europe.
ICAR to set up National Hybrid Rice Consortium
Hyderabad: Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) is in the process of establishing a National Hybrid Rice Consortium to bring all stakeholders onto a common platform to share research knowledge and put it to use in order to build the hybrid rice ecosystem.
ICAR has held several rounds of consultation meetings with public agencies and private firms on the need and on the framework for such a consortium.
“We have appointed a committee to come out with terms of reference for the consortium. We will share them with all the stakeholders and after considering the feedback we will announce the launch of the consortium,” Swapan K. Datta, Deputy Director-General of ICAR, told Business Line on the sidelines of the sixth international Hybrid Rice Symposium here on Monday.
In all likelihood, the consortium will be formed in a month. Private firms will pay a membership (about Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh). Government universities and research agencies will get membership free of charge.
The stakeholders will bring in their research output to the platform.
“Those interested can use them after paying a certain amount. The consortium would maintain a database of the research knowledge and its authors. This is to keep tabs on the unauthorised use of the material or inventions,” he said.
Initially, the consortium will take care of the hybrid rice. “We are planning to extend this to other crops as well in the future,” the ICAR official said.
“After working for years, some scientists and research bodies discard certain lines. They don’t use them any longer. They can bring such research updates to the platform. We will give the receivers non-exclusive rights,” he said.
ICAR has held several rounds of consultation meetings with public agencies and private firms on the need and on the framework for such a consortium.
“We have appointed a committee to come out with terms of reference for the consortium. We will share them with all the stakeholders and after considering the feedback we will announce the launch of the consortium,” Swapan K. Datta, Deputy Director-General of ICAR, told Business Line on the sidelines of the sixth international Hybrid Rice Symposium here on Monday.
In all likelihood, the consortium will be formed in a month. Private firms will pay a membership (about Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh). Government universities and research agencies will get membership free of charge.
The stakeholders will bring in their research output to the platform.
“Those interested can use them after paying a certain amount. The consortium would maintain a database of the research knowledge and its authors. This is to keep tabs on the unauthorised use of the material or inventions,” he said.
Initially, the consortium will take care of the hybrid rice. “We are planning to extend this to other crops as well in the future,” the ICAR official said.
“After working for years, some scientists and research bodies discard certain lines. They don’t use them any longer. They can bring such research updates to the platform. We will give the receivers non-exclusive rights,” he said.
Adanis' coal-fired plant at Mundra to earn Rs 600 cr in carbon credits
Ahmedabad: The third phase of Adani Power Ltd’s (APL) thermal power plant at Mundra in Gujarat has become the world’s first coal-fired plant to receive carbon credits from the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the company announced on Monday.
APL, a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises Ltd and part of the Adani Group, has set up the 4,620 MW coal-fired thermal power plant at Mundra. Its Phase III, comprising two units of 660 MW each, has received carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of UNFCCC.
APL will earn about Rs 600 crore in carbon credits trading over the first 10 years of the plant’s operation. It is expected to generate about 1.8 million Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) annually.
APL’s other projects to be registered under CDM are the Mundra Phase IV (three units of 660 MW each), Tiroda Phase II and III in Maharashtra (three units of 660 MW in each phase), Kawai power plant in Rajasthan (entire 1,320 MW) and the 1,000-km-long Mundra-Mohindergarh High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission line linking Gujarat with Haryana.
Commenting on this achievement, Rajesh Adani, Managing Director, APL, said, “While the reduced combustion of fossil fuels will help conserve precious natural resources, the carbon credit issuance to our project will also encourage other entities to implement similar projects to reduce their own carbon footprint. Additionally, we are confident of expanding our generation capacity to nearly 10,000 by March 2013.”
APL, India’s largest private thermal power producer, operates the world’s largest single-location thermal power plant of 4,620 MW capacity. In 2009, the Phase III of Mundra plant became the world’s first project registered under the ‘ACM0013’ methodology under CDM of the UNFCCC. This methodology is used to register thermal power projects which use technologically advanced equipment that burn a lesser quantity of fossil fuel.
The other APL projects registered under CDM are the two units of 660 MW each under Phase I at Tiroda plant in Maharashtra (with 11.9 million CERs/year) and a 40 solar power plant at Bitta, Gujarat (with 62,000 CERs/year).
APL, a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises Ltd and part of the Adani Group, has set up the 4,620 MW coal-fired thermal power plant at Mundra. Its Phase III, comprising two units of 660 MW each, has received carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of UNFCCC.
APL will earn about Rs 600 crore in carbon credits trading over the first 10 years of the plant’s operation. It is expected to generate about 1.8 million Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) annually.
APL’s other projects to be registered under CDM are the Mundra Phase IV (three units of 660 MW each), Tiroda Phase II and III in Maharashtra (three units of 660 MW in each phase), Kawai power plant in Rajasthan (entire 1,320 MW) and the 1,000-km-long Mundra-Mohindergarh High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission line linking Gujarat with Haryana.
Commenting on this achievement, Rajesh Adani, Managing Director, APL, said, “While the reduced combustion of fossil fuels will help conserve precious natural resources, the carbon credit issuance to our project will also encourage other entities to implement similar projects to reduce their own carbon footprint. Additionally, we are confident of expanding our generation capacity to nearly 10,000 by March 2013.”
APL, India’s largest private thermal power producer, operates the world’s largest single-location thermal power plant of 4,620 MW capacity. In 2009, the Phase III of Mundra plant became the world’s first project registered under the ‘ACM0013’ methodology under CDM of the UNFCCC. This methodology is used to register thermal power projects which use technologically advanced equipment that burn a lesser quantity of fossil fuel.
The other APL projects registered under CDM are the two units of 660 MW each under Phase I at Tiroda plant in Maharashtra (with 11.9 million CERs/year) and a 40 solar power plant at Bitta, Gujarat (with 62,000 CERs/year).
Exim Bank raises Rs 1,120 cr in Singapore market
Mumbai: Export-Import Bank of India has raised Singapore $250 million (around Rs 1,118 crore) through five-year bonds.
The coupon on the bonds, which have been issued at par, is 3.375 per cent.
This is the longest tenor of publicly listed Singapore dollar bonds by an Indian entity so far.
According to David Rasquinha, Executive Director, Exim Bank, the resources will be utilised to support export transactions, government-backed lines of credit, trade credit, and to fund overseas acquisitions by Indian corporates.
Of Exim Bank’s loan book of about $11 billion, about half is in the form of foreign currency loans, said Rasquniha.
The Singapore $250 million bond issue is part of Exim Bank’s umbrella $2.5 billion medium term note programme.
Strongly Subscribed
According to Rajiv Nayar, Head of Capital Markets Origination at Citi India, Exim Bank’s inaugural five-year S$250 million bond was strongly subscribed by several regional asset managers and private banks, resulting in tight pricing of 3.375 per cent.
The coupon on the bonds, which have been issued at par, is 3.375 per cent.
This is the longest tenor of publicly listed Singapore dollar bonds by an Indian entity so far.
According to David Rasquinha, Executive Director, Exim Bank, the resources will be utilised to support export transactions, government-backed lines of credit, trade credit, and to fund overseas acquisitions by Indian corporates.
Of Exim Bank’s loan book of about $11 billion, about half is in the form of foreign currency loans, said Rasquniha.
The Singapore $250 million bond issue is part of Exim Bank’s umbrella $2.5 billion medium term note programme.
Strongly Subscribed
According to Rajiv Nayar, Head of Capital Markets Origination at Citi India, Exim Bank’s inaugural five-year S$250 million bond was strongly subscribed by several regional asset managers and private banks, resulting in tight pricing of 3.375 per cent.
M&M in JV with Sanyo, Mitsui for steel business
Chennai: Japanese specialty steel and trading majors Sanyo and Mitsui have picked up 29% and 20% stake each in a three-way joint venture with Mahindra group company MUSCO (Mahindra Ugine Steel Company Ltd). As part of the arrangement, Sanyo will offer technical support and Mitsui marketing assistance to the speciality steel joint venture, which will be called Mahindra Sanyo Special Steel Pvt Ltd (MSSSPL).
Sanyo has invested Rs 129 crore and Mitsui Rs 89 crore in the JV while Musco will retain 51% stake. Mahindra Group is also looking to extend the 'relationship' with Mitsui and talks are currently on to see if it can be extended to auto components or aerospace, said sources. As and when necessary, Mitsui will either invest in a partnership with M&M or its subsidiaries or bring in another partner for a 3-way JV.
The board of directors of MUSCO announced the financial closure of the 51:49 JV on Thursday. MUSCO had approved the slump sale of its steel business into its 100% subsidiary Navyug Special Steel Pvt Litd (Navyug Steel) in November 2011.
Hemant Luthra, chairman, MSSSPL, said, "Navyug is now MSSSPL and the name change was approved at the board meeting on September 5 with a structure that will have three Mahindra-nominated directors, two Sanyo-nominated directors, one from Mitsui and one independent director on the JV board. Sanyo is deputing seven people to support technical operations of the JV while Mitsui will support us with marketing. The first products from the JV will be branded Mahindra Sanyo but we will look into using the Sanyo brand on its own in the future."
The JV will not impact the shareholding of MUSCO and the Rs 1,342 crore specialty and alloy steel maker saw its share price rise 2.4% to close at Rs 48.55 on the BSE. The JV will also be the start of more partnerships between Mitsui and Group Mahindra and talks are already on to cover "more sectors".
"We have been working together for three to four years and we would like the relationship to go beyond just one JV," said H Furuhata, GM, investment and planning, Mitsui. "We are already talking of businesses where we have special skills like products and businesses related to iron and steel."
Added Luthra: "We would love to have them participate with us in the auto component business for instance. There are options being explored and we will also talk about aerospace. The arrangement with Mitsui is where they have the technical skills, we will form a straight JV and where they don't, they will find us a tech partner for a three-way JV like MSSSPL."
The objective of the JV will be to use the expertise of all three partners to move up the value chain and target high-end niche markets for specialty steel.
Sanyo has invested Rs 129 crore and Mitsui Rs 89 crore in the JV while Musco will retain 51% stake. Mahindra Group is also looking to extend the 'relationship' with Mitsui and talks are currently on to see if it can be extended to auto components or aerospace, said sources. As and when necessary, Mitsui will either invest in a partnership with M&M or its subsidiaries or bring in another partner for a 3-way JV.
The board of directors of MUSCO announced the financial closure of the 51:49 JV on Thursday. MUSCO had approved the slump sale of its steel business into its 100% subsidiary Navyug Special Steel Pvt Litd (Navyug Steel) in November 2011.
Hemant Luthra, chairman, MSSSPL, said, "Navyug is now MSSSPL and the name change was approved at the board meeting on September 5 with a structure that will have three Mahindra-nominated directors, two Sanyo-nominated directors, one from Mitsui and one independent director on the JV board. Sanyo is deputing seven people to support technical operations of the JV while Mitsui will support us with marketing. The first products from the JV will be branded Mahindra Sanyo but we will look into using the Sanyo brand on its own in the future."
The JV will not impact the shareholding of MUSCO and the Rs 1,342 crore specialty and alloy steel maker saw its share price rise 2.4% to close at Rs 48.55 on the BSE. The JV will also be the start of more partnerships between Mitsui and Group Mahindra and talks are already on to cover "more sectors".
"We have been working together for three to four years and we would like the relationship to go beyond just one JV," said H Furuhata, GM, investment and planning, Mitsui. "We are already talking of businesses where we have special skills like products and businesses related to iron and steel."
Added Luthra: "We would love to have them participate with us in the auto component business for instance. There are options being explored and we will also talk about aerospace. The arrangement with Mitsui is where they have the technical skills, we will form a straight JV and where they don't, they will find us a tech partner for a three-way JV like MSSSPL."
The objective of the JV will be to use the expertise of all three partners to move up the value chain and target high-end niche markets for specialty steel.
PSLV-C21 sends French SPOT 6, Japanese satellite into orbit
Sriharikota: The 100th Indian space mission was a grand success with an Indian rocket blasting off carrying two foreign satellites from Sriharikota.
On a cloudy Sunday morning, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C21 (PSLV-C21) blasted off carrying two satellites from the first launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
On the terrace of the media centre, a large contingent of media persons cheered the entire journey of the rocket till it vanished into the clouds.
At 9.53 a.m., the PSLV-C21, 44 metres tall and weighing 230 tonne, launched the French earth observation satellite SPOT 6 along with a micro-satellite from Japan into a 635-km polar orbit. PSLV-C21 is the eighth flight of PSLV in “core-alone” configuration (without solid strap-on motors). This is the 22nd consecutive time that a PSLV rocket has taken a satellite.
Coming out behind the lush green trees, the rocket with orange flame in the tail burst in to the sky amid cheers of scientists in the control room and the media team assembled at the terrace of the launch centre.
After 18 minutes into the flight, PSLV-C21 delivered SPOT 6 and a few seconds later Proiteres into their intended polar orbit. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh along with Minister in Prime Minister’s Office V. Narayanasamy witnessed the launch.
There was a two-minute delay in the launch due to impact of possible debris in space, K. Radhakrishnan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), told newspersons later.
With a lift off of 712 kg, SPOT 6 is the heaviest satellite to be launched by PSLV for an international customer. The Japanese micro-satellite Proiteres, carried as an auxiliary payload, has a lift off mass of 15 km. The cost of the rocket was Rs 90 crore. “We have recovered the project cost,” he said without giving details.
SPOT 6 is a French Earth Observation Satellite capable of imaging the earth with a resolution of 1.5 metre. This latest generation optical remote sensing satellite is built by Astrium SAS, a leading European space technology company.
Proiteres, on the other hand, is intended to study powered flight of a small satellite by an electric thruster and observe Kansai district in Japan with a high resolution camera.
ISRO has sent 29 foreign satellites successfully to the orbit, including today’s launch.
The successful launch of SPOT 6 would make ISRO’s PSLV rocket a strong contender to carry SPOT 7 planned by Astrium SAS soon, said Radhakrishan. India has one of the largest constellations of remote sensing satellites in the world providing imagery in a variety of spatial resolutions ranging over a metre to 500 metre. With 12 remote sensing/earth observation satellites orbiting in the space, India has proved its capability in the remote sensing data market.
A cheerful Prime Minister later addressing scientists at the mission control room said today’s “launch is a milestone in our nation’s space capabilities”.
The launch of these satellites on board an Indian launch vehicle is testimony to the commercial competitiveness of the Indian space industry and is a tribute to Indian innovation and ingenuity, he said.
On a cloudy Sunday morning, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C21 (PSLV-C21) blasted off carrying two satellites from the first launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
On the terrace of the media centre, a large contingent of media persons cheered the entire journey of the rocket till it vanished into the clouds.
At 9.53 a.m., the PSLV-C21, 44 metres tall and weighing 230 tonne, launched the French earth observation satellite SPOT 6 along with a micro-satellite from Japan into a 635-km polar orbit. PSLV-C21 is the eighth flight of PSLV in “core-alone” configuration (without solid strap-on motors). This is the 22nd consecutive time that a PSLV rocket has taken a satellite.
Coming out behind the lush green trees, the rocket with orange flame in the tail burst in to the sky amid cheers of scientists in the control room and the media team assembled at the terrace of the launch centre.
After 18 minutes into the flight, PSLV-C21 delivered SPOT 6 and a few seconds later Proiteres into their intended polar orbit. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh along with Minister in Prime Minister’s Office V. Narayanasamy witnessed the launch.
There was a two-minute delay in the launch due to impact of possible debris in space, K. Radhakrishnan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), told newspersons later.
With a lift off of 712 kg, SPOT 6 is the heaviest satellite to be launched by PSLV for an international customer. The Japanese micro-satellite Proiteres, carried as an auxiliary payload, has a lift off mass of 15 km. The cost of the rocket was Rs 90 crore. “We have recovered the project cost,” he said without giving details.
SPOT 6 is a French Earth Observation Satellite capable of imaging the earth with a resolution of 1.5 metre. This latest generation optical remote sensing satellite is built by Astrium SAS, a leading European space technology company.
Proiteres, on the other hand, is intended to study powered flight of a small satellite by an electric thruster and observe Kansai district in Japan with a high resolution camera.
ISRO has sent 29 foreign satellites successfully to the orbit, including today’s launch.
The successful launch of SPOT 6 would make ISRO’s PSLV rocket a strong contender to carry SPOT 7 planned by Astrium SAS soon, said Radhakrishan. India has one of the largest constellations of remote sensing satellites in the world providing imagery in a variety of spatial resolutions ranging over a metre to 500 metre. With 12 remote sensing/earth observation satellites orbiting in the space, India has proved its capability in the remote sensing data market.
A cheerful Prime Minister later addressing scientists at the mission control room said today’s “launch is a milestone in our nation’s space capabilities”.
The launch of these satellites on board an Indian launch vehicle is testimony to the commercial competitiveness of the Indian space industry and is a tribute to Indian innovation and ingenuity, he said.
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