Gujarat Gas in 12-year supply pact with GSPC

Ahmedabad: State-owned gas distribution major Gujarat Gas Co Ltd (GGCL) has executed a long-term gas supply contract with its parent Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) for the purchase of 0.65 million metric standard cubic meter per day (mmscmd) for next 12 years.

Under the agreement, GSPC will supply imported re-gassified liquefied natural gas (R-LNG) to GGCL from January 1, 2014 up to July 01, 2025. The move is seen as a major relief for GGCL, as it will get assured gas supply for a long period. GGCL’s dependence on spot LNG will reduce, as the supply pact is expected to help it meet nearly 50 per cent of its total R-LNG requirement of around 1.3 mmscmd.

In an MoU signed last September, GSPC had agreed to supply up to 0.85 mmscmd of gas to GGCL.

GGCL will buy 0.574 mmscmd (of gas) between period March 1, 2014 up to July 01, 2025, and 0.076 mmscmd between January 01, 2014 up to July 01, 2025, said a statement filed with exchanges by GGCL. The price of gas will be determined in the relevant gas station control systems and it is expected to be formula-based.

Meanwhile, GGCL is also exploring other options to secure long-term gas supplies to further reduce its dependence on the costly spot LNG.

South power grid linked with national

Synchrony of power transmission lines refers to their ability to withstand sudden and large variations in power flow
New Delhi: The southern region’s power grid was connected to the rest of the country’s transmission network on Wednesday after state-owned transmission company Power Grid Corp commissioned a power line between Solapur in Maharashtra and Raichur in Karnataka, the power ministry has said.

The inter-connection would enable inter-regional flow of power, helping cut the electricity deficit in the south and ease power prices in the spot market. The new power link, a single-circuit 765-Kilo Volt line, has been constructed at a cost of Rs 815 crore.

“Synchronous interconnection of the southern region with the North-East-West grid was envisaged through the high capacity 765 KV Raichur – Sholapur lines, a step towards the establishment of a pan-India national grid facilitating bulk transfer of power across regional boundaries,” the power ministry said in a statement.

Synchrony of power transmission lines refers to their ability to withstand sudden and large variations in power flow that cause tripping and blackouts.

The Indian national grid now is a complex mesh of inter-regional transmission lines running criss-cross between the northern, eastern, western, north-eastern and southern grids. The network has a capacity to transfer 2,32,000 Megawatt of power.

Coal & Oil Group to invest Rs 10k cr in TN

The project which is being developed at a cost of around Rs 6,800 cr by Coastal Energen Pvt Ltd, the power-generating flagship company of the C&O Group
Chennai: Dubai-based Coal & Oil (C&O) Group, building a 1,200-Mw thermal plant in Tuticorin district of Tamil Nadu for Rs 6,800 crore, has said it will invest another Rs 10,000 crore to increase the capacity by 1,600 Mw to 2,800 Mw.

R Venkataramani, vice-president (finance and accounts), said public hearing for the proposed expansion of the Mutiara Thermal Power Plant had been completed and work will start once the existing project completes. The company has about 1,000 acres, good enough for the project as well as its expansion.

Last week, C&O Group said it secured additional funding of around Rs 1,600 crore from a State Bank of India (SBI)-led public sector bank consortium to complete the 1,200-Mw plant, being developed at a cost of around Rs 6,800 crore by Coastal Energen Pvt Ltd, the power-generating flagship company of the C&O Group. The plant has so far obtained Rs 5,200 crore in funding from a consortium led by SBI, said Venkataramani.

Ahmed Buhari, founder and president of the C&O Group, said considering the acute power shortage in Tamil Nadu, the company had committed to supply a large part of its generation to the state grid.

The latest sanction of Rs 1,600 crore will contribute to last-mile funding and address cost escalation due to the recent devaluation of the rupee, among other things. The first phase of the 2x600 Mw power plant is expected to go on stream in June 2014, after a delay of around 12 months. The second phase will commence producing power within four months of the phase-I commissioning date, Buhari added.

The Mutiara plant aims to address the power shortage in the state, which is to the tune of 5,000 Mw. The company has signed a power purchase agreement with the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation for 600 Mw, Buhari said.

The plant will benefit from the proximity to both a major city (Tuticorin) and major port, as well as road, rail and air connectivity. It is currently the first and only mega project that has commenced out of the 30 which were planned in the past 15 years.

Central Government approves 1080 more buses for 13 cities/cluster of cities

New Delhi: Under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM), Ministry of Urban Development under the guidance of Shri Kamal Nath, Minister for Urban Development has sanctioned buses to following 13 cities/ cluster of cities in the Central Sanctioning & Monitoring Committee Meeting held on 31.12.2013 :

S.No. State City No. of buses sanctioned
1 Bihar Purnea 61
2. Darbhanga 53
3. Katihar 38
4. Bhagalpur 55
5. Andhra Pradesh Karimnagar 70
6. Maharashtra Vasai-Virar 346
7. Latur 60
8. Odisha Jeypore-Koraput 40
9. Cuttack- Choudwar 100
10. Balasore-Bhadrak 54
11. Punjab Patiala 50
12. Sikkim Gangtok 53
13. Tripura Agartala 100
Total 1080
These cities have also been sanctioned projects relating to ancillary infrastructure viz. Depot, Workshops, ITS etc. for Urban Transport. In addition, ancillary infrastructure project for Bathinda has also been approved. The total estimated project cost for these 13 cities/ cluster of cities is Rs. 464 crore (approx.).

The State Govt. has to procure these buses as per the urban bus specifications-II which have been prepared by the Ministry of Urban Development recently. 1st instalment of Government of India share will be released to the State after submission of information / documents within three months as per the conditions given in bus funding guidelines.

The objective behind sanctioning of these buses is to improve the city transport system, to give Metro experience to public in these modern ITS enabled buses and to attract the public to use Public Transport. The JNNURM buses will change the face of the Urban Transport of these 13 cities and will help in the overall growth of the State/ UT

Anand Sharma expresses optimism for economy in 2014

New Delhi: The Union Minister of Commerce & Industry Shri Anand Sharma expressed optimism for the economy in 2014. In a statement, Shri Sharma said:

In 2013, India was rated as the most favoured investment destination globally. The bold decisions of the UPA Government for liberalizing Foreign Direct Investment Policy in key sectors such as civil aviation, retail and telecom have resonated with the global community and we have seen results in the last few months. The Government will continue its endeavour for liberalizing the FDI Policy further in the coming weeks to ensure that India retains its leadership position for attracting foreign investments.

I am also happy to see that manufacturing seems to be on the mend and there is visible rebound in industrial activity. The Indian economy has inherent strengths which give it resilience from external pressures and the series of steps taken by the Government both on the fiscal and current account front have yielded positive results.

The coming months will see a greater push for development of industrial corridors across the country and work will commence for establishment of the first few cities along the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor. I expect that with greater foreign investment and technology collaborations, Indian manufacturing will also move up the value chain and acquire greater competitiveness globally.

There is also optimism about the scenario on the export front. Inspite of weak demand in traditional markets, exports have done reasonably well and in the first eight months of the current financial year, exports touched US$ 204 billion, registering a growth of over 6% over the same period last year. It was also reassuring that the trade deficit also came down to US$ 99.9 billion during this period as compared to US$ 129 billion during the same period last year. I am sure that the in the remaining period of this financial year, exports will show a strong and dynamic growth.

Rising demand for platinum jewellery

With restrictions on gold and more awareness of this substitute, import doubles to 40 tonnes in a year, aided by buyback assurances

Mumbai: Rakhi Agarwal, a mid-rank salaried woman in a western Mumbai suburb, was overjoyed this festive season when friend Rimmi told her about a new jewellery collection made of platinum. Saved through a regular cut in spending over 18 months, Rakhi bought a platinum ring weighing six grammes for the first time from a jewellery retailer.

She now advises all her friends to spend on platinum instead of gold, with the prospect of a price increase and a different look from the regular yellow metal wear. Rimmi, a software professional, spent a little over Rs 5 lakh on platinum jewellery collections for the first time, for her sister’s wedding. “It gives me the pleasure of owing a rare metal, with assurance of buyback similar to gold jewellery,” she said.

The changing perception towards platinum has encouraged younger aspirants to own a piece, as had been the case for gold until recently. There are two basic reasons for the change. Consumers have begun to feel platinum is available and affordable. Second, jewellers have widened the availability of ornaments.

In addition, platinum coins have become an investment option, without any restriction on sales unlike the case of gold coins, where the Reserve Bank of India has been monitoring continuously.

“Platinum is increasingly becoming a metal of choice for weddings and engagements. The white lustre brings out the sparkle of the diamonds. Every year, we introduce new designs. The male rings starts at Rs 65,000 onwards and the female rings at Rs 35,000,” said Vijay Jain, chief executive, ORRA, one of the largest jewellery retailers in this metal.

“Our consumer research and market reports suggest awareness for platinum is very high among younger consumers. They buy/gift platinum for special occasions; it is established as a precious gift of love. As the awareness and knowledge deepens, the market should see higher growth,” said Vaishali Banerjee, country head, Platinum Guild International.

Among the rising demand in platinum jewellery, love bands (couple rings), women’s chain/pendants and men’s chain or bracelet are the most popular. Banerjee says platinum jewellery demand rose a little over 30 per cent in 2013.

It is also used in photography. The implication of rising platinum demand is evident on imports. According to Mehul Choksi, chairman of Gitanjali Gems, a jewellery retailer with global presence, import of platinum was around 40 tonnes this year as compared to around 18 tonnes last year. He says the restrictions on gold will further raise platinum demand.

BHEL modernises 200-MW thermal power unit in UP

New Delhi: Power equipment maker BHEL has renovated, modernised and uprated a 200-MW thermal power unit at Obra in Uttar Pradesh. This is a Russian machine and being used by Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Utpaadan Nigam Ltd.

This unit has already completed 25 years of operation and now the working life of the machine has been extended by another 15-20 years. At the same time, it can generate 216-MW electricity and also has been synchronised with the grid.

All these happened even in the absence of original design documentations. It may be noted that this is the first time when the company has modernised and uprated any 200-MW class machine in India.

Currently over 150 sets of 200/210 MW rating are in operation in the country. Out of this, about 70 sets have outlived their designed economic life of 25 years.

Capacity uprating

Power utilities need to see this as an opportunity for capacity uprating and life extension to not only improve their performance level in terms of improving efficiency and reducing emissions but also extending their useful life span by another two decades.

BHEL has already executed renovation and modernisation of 10 units with a capacity up to 120 MW. Now it is working on five sets of 110 MW units and four sets of 200 MW units for improving the efficiency.

With problem in setting up new plants due to various reasons, optimum utilisation of the existing capacity to maximise the generation through renovation and modernisation and life extension of existing power plants is considered to be the most cost-effective option.

Kolkata fast emerging as new retail hotspot: Study

Kolkata: Kolkata is fast emerging as the new hotspot for retail, indicates a Cushman & Wakefield survey, which pegs mall space occupancy in the city in the third quarter at 95%. The eastern city, which till some years ago had only one mall, the Forum Mall in central Kolkata, now has a string of them — the Mani Square Mall, Avani Mall and the newly inaugurated Quest Mall, to name a few.

In its 'Retail Q3 Report', the real estate consultancy says that mall space in the city could go up by another 440,000 square feet in the coming months.

"With new malls in the city, the contribution of grade A spaces to the overall net absorption till Q3 has increased to 93% as compared to 86% last year during the same period," said Sanjay Dutt, executive managing director, South Asia, Cushman & Wakefield.

While grade A spaces dominated market ac tivity in the city, overall vacancy level in malls stood at 4.4%, down 0.2 percentage point from the previous quarter.

For the first three quarters of 2013, supply of space under all grades was 1.26 million square ft, up 22% from a year ago.

About 420,000 sq ft of retail and F&B space was added to the mall inventory with the inauguration of the first phase of Quest Mall at Syed Amir Ali Avenue in September. being developed by CESC Properties.

The Quest Mall offers about 420,000 sq ft of retail and F&B space and about 328,000 sq ft of parking space. While the ground floor houses luxury brands, the floors above are occupied by premium and bridge brands.

Acropolis, a Rs 350-crore PPP between KMDA and Merlin Projects off the Rashbehari-EM Bypass connector is expected to be ready in another six months. The integrated project will offer 8 lakh sq ft of mixed-use development area. Spread across 6.5 acres of land, the retail space in the mall is expected to be about 3 lakh sq ft.

The total number of outlets at Acropolis would be around 90. Though the mall shall concentrate on bridge brands, in the entertainment and retail space it also boasts of quite a few firsts.

For movie aficionados there will be Cinepolis, the world's fourth largest and India's first international cinema exhibitor.

"We are excited to enter Kolkata. We perceive the market to have a deficit in terms of supply of multiplex screens and we hope to take an advantage of this," said Ashish Shukla, country head, Cinepolis India.

The phenomenal growth in the city's retail space is also drawing national and international brands. Among the labels gearing up to enter the Kolkata market are Burberry, Furla, Canali, Emporio Armani, Michael Kors, Gucci, Armani Jeans, Tumi and Paul Smith.

OVL buys 12% more stake in Brazilian block for $561 mn

New Delhi: ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) on Tuesday said that it has acquired an additional 12 per cent participating interest in Brazil’s deepwater offshore block, Block BC-10. Post the deal, the Indian explorer’s stake in the acreage would be 27 per cent.

OVL and Shell (operator of the block) exercised their pre-emption rights to buy additional stake from Petrobras.

“OVL has paid a purchase consideration of $561 million for 12 per cent stake in the block,” the public sector explorer said in a statement. Now, Shell, the operator of the block, holds 73 per cent stake.

In 2006, OVL had acquired 15 per cent participating interest in the block located in Campos Basin of Brazil.

Earlier, Petrobras had 35 per cent stake in the block. In August 2013, Petrobras had entered into an agreement with Sinochem for the sale of its 35 per cent stake in the block.

Pre-exemption rights

This agreement was subject to pre-emption rights of the partners. Shell and OVL exercised their pre-emption rights for the acquisition of 23 per cent and 12 per cent participating interests, respectively.

On approval of the Brazilian regulatory authorities for acquisition, the transaction has been completed on December 30, OVL said.

The block BC-10 includes four offshore deepwater fields — Ostra, Abalone, Argonauta and Nautilus and a few identified exploration prospects.

Oil production

The project is being developed in three phases. Production from the first phase had started in 2009. The second phase came on stream in October 2013 with an expected peak production of about 35,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in 2014.

Currently, oil production from the block is about 50,000 boepd. The third phase is to come on stream in 2016 with an expected peak production of about 28000 boepd in 2017. Production from all the phases is expected to be about 75,000 boepd in 2017.

Maldives President to meet biz leaders of India Inc

New Delhi: The newly elected President of Maldives, Abdula Yameen Abdul Gayoom, begins his first trip abroad with a four-day visit to India from Wednesday.

His visit comes in the backdrop of the island nation wanting to increase sourcing of products from India.

Official sources said “some proposals in the pipeline” were whether Maldives can utilise India as a source for some important and essential requirements which could be unveiled during the President’s visit.

Apart from meeting President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Gayoom will interact with business representatives.

A senior Government official said despite the setback that the GMR Group had suffered in Maldives, there was a fair amount of interest in business circles on the possibilities in the island nation.

The GMR Group and the Maldives Government are currently involved in arbitration in Singapore after the Indian company was asked to give up the contract that it won for managing the airport in Maldives.

The Maldives Government terminated the airport project claiming irregularities in the award of the contract, a point denied by the GMR Group, which points out that transparency in the bidding process was accepted by the World Bank affiliate, International Finance Corporation.

Officials pointed out some recent success stories for Indian companies investing in Maldives, such as a Mumbai-based company, which recently won a contract for converting waste disposal into energy.