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Govt, RBI steps for full rupee float soon
Ethanol-blended petrol in all states by Nov
Mittal sees new obstacles to bid
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Caparo to invest £100 m in India
Dell keen to make India manufacturing hub
New norms on coal blocks soon
Harpal Singh is CII Punjab council chief
CPSUs line up Rs 1,42,000-crore plans
Trade policy
Infomedia to acquire Noida-based firm
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Govt, RBI steps for full rupee float soon
New Delhi, March 20
What full convertibility is
At the moment, the rupee is convertible on the current account, which covers external trade in goods and services, but only partially convertible on the capital account. This means companies need the central bank’s permission to borrow from overseas. The central bank has set a limit for 2006/07 of $15 billion on overseas corporate borrowing, up from $12 billion in the current fiscal year to the end of March. Greater convertibility would give companies more access to foreign debt markets and cut delays in foreign exchange transactions. It could also lift restrictions on how much private individuals can take abroad, allow the rupee greater freedom of movement and enhance foreign investors’ access to India’s banks and debt market.
— Reuters
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PM advocates telecom convergence
New Delhi, March 20 “We are working steadily towards the issue of releasing spectrum from government use for the use of commercial telecom operators so that the growth of the dynamic sector is not constrained by the shortage of this vital resource,” he said, addressing the inaugural function of the Bharti School of Telecommunication Technology and Management at the Indian Institute of Technology here. The Prime Minister also stressed on the need for a forward-looking approach for “convergence” (offering telecom and broadcast services on a single platform). “Convergence has its own logic and government policy must be mindful of ground realities. No policy can be effective if it is not in step with market and technological realities,” he said. Expressing concern over the wide gap between rural and urban teledensity, he said, while the country has achieved impressive growth overall, the penetration in rural areas is still quite low with a teledensity of less than two per thousand. Meanwhile, the telecom regulator today said the unified licensing recommendations sent to the government should be approved at the earliest to help reduce the licence fee for domestic and long distance operations from Rs 107 crore to Rs 5 crore. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) said here that there should be converged regulatory regime and the starting point for this exercise should be the Communications Convergence Bill, 2001. However, several changes need to be made in this Bill. Content regulation should be kept out of the purview of the converged regulator. Trai said due to technological advancements there is a trend towards unification of networks & services leading to the emergence of Next Generation Networks (NGN), which are mostly IP-based. The regulator in its recommendation called for an urgent need for converged/unified licensing regime to enable NGN networks to be utilised to their full capabilities and promotion of broadband in the country. In a separate development, the Supreme Court today issued notice to Cellular Operators Association of India on a BSNL petition challenging a TDSAT order, which asked the state-owned telecom major to charge a fixed rate of 20 paise per minute as “carriage” charges from cellphone operators.
Bharti arm eyes stake in TCIL
Bharti group company Bharti Teletech has bid for 30 per cent stake in the public sector Telecom Consultants India Ltd’s in Bharti Hexacom, which if succeeds, would give the group over 95 per cent control of the company. “TCIL wants to sell its stake in Hexacom. They had put out a tender invitation and we are participating in it,” Sunil Mittal, Chairman and Managing Director Bharti Enterprises said after the inauguration. He said Bharti already owns majority share in the company and it would not quote “astronomical amount” to get the additional 30 per cent stake. Bharti is among others who are bidding for TCIL’s 30 per cent stake in Bharti Hexacom, the largest cellular mobile operator in Rajasthan.
— PTI
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Ethanol-blended petrol in all states by Nov
New Delhi, March 20 In nine states petrol blended with 5 per cent ethanol, a bio-fuel derived from sugarcane, is already being supplied. But the programme has been running behind schedule due to the inconsistent supply of ethanol as also the price issue. The petroleum ministry together with the sugar industry has come to an understanding on the price issue but the supply of the bio-fuel remains a problem, Petroleum Secretary M.S. Srinivasan told industry representatives at a roundtable organised by the CII here today. He said: “We plan to supply ethanol-blended petrol across the country from the next sugarcane crushing season. This would require 0.5 million kilolitre for 5 per cent
blending. The sugar industry is estimated to have the capacity to produce 500 to 600 kilolitres of ethanol in the private sector. Mr Srinivasan said the main problem with the ethanol programme is that many state governments were not cooperating. As a result, the availability of ethanol remains an uncertain proposition. The problem lies in the fact that some state governments are giving first preference to the demand of the alcohol industry in the allocation of molasses.
Iran offers gas at $6 per MBTU
Meanwhile, Iran has made its first pipeline gas price offer of $6 per million British thermal unit (MBTU) - far above what India and Pakistan consider economical. Official sources said after long negotiations, Iran has given the first price offer in the range of $6 per MBTU to be delivered at the Iran-Pakistan border. The Petroleum Secretary said from the highs of $12-$13 MBTU, the spot price of gas being traded globally has softened to around $7-$8 MBTU.
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Mittal sees new obstacles to bid
London, March 20 “I am really worried about the obstacles that Arcelor’s management and the Luxembourg’s Chamber of Commerce are confronting us with,” Mittal told the Belgian press this weekend. Mittal Steel, the world’s largest steel producer, had made a $22.7 billion bid for Arcelor, attracting the ire of many European Mittal also criticised Arcelor’s prospects, saying that it “has not been able to grow its business in the high-growth market.” Mittal said he was confident that “at the end of the day shareholders will make the right decision”, and “we should be completing the merger before the end of June”. Mittal ruled out an all-cash bid, claiming that Arcelor shareholders would be happy to take just a quarter of the bid in cash. PARIS: The French Finance Ministry said on Monday it would study in detail a document submitted by Mittal Steel about its planned takeover of Arcelor, which has many steel operations in France. “A Mittal delegation presented (the ministry’s) services with an industrial plan on Friday and the ministry will now study that thoroughly and ask the Mittal team additional questions so that ultimately there can be a meeting between (Finance Minister) Thierry Breton and Mr Mittal,” a spokesman said. Mittal, the world’s biggest steel group, has already presented the 115-page detailed business plan to the governments of Spain, Belgium and Luxembourg. The four countries constitute the home base of Arcelor which was created in 2002 in a multi-national merger. France, where more than 26,000 jobs could be affected by a takeover, has voiced strong concerns over the hostile bid.
— PTI, Reuters
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Caparo to invest £100 m in India
London, March 20 “I’ve been saying for 25 years that India is going to be a big manufacturing country and it is now coming true,” Lord Paul, British ambassador for overseas business, said in an interview published in The Financial Times today. “Caparo, which hopes to earn a profit of £40 million this year, aims to invest its cash in India over the next five years in building up to five new plants on top of the four it already operates in the country. Much of the higher production from Caparo in India would be channelled to the company’s existing customers in the vehicle industry, including General Motors, Ford, Honda and Suzuki. Caparo’s investment in India will include a £10 million plan to build a new development centre similar to one the company operates in Wolverhampton in the UK. Lord Paul said he was evaluating several sites, including Chennai, for the new centre.
— PTI
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Dell keen to make India manufacturing hub
Bangalore, March 20 India is very much upfront in the company’s global growth drive outside the US with Michael Dell saying it was the fastest growing market. The Dell Chairman, who is on a visit to Bangalore, while speaking at a function felt the Centre had to come forward with an initiative to see PC manufacturing to take place in the country. Dell said besides this his company would like semi-conductor and LCD screen manufacturing to take place in India. Dell will be increasing the staff strength at its Mohali centre. Its R&D in-charge Vivek Mansingh said the strength of the Centre could double in a two-year period. The Centre has 1,500 personnel on its rolls. The company, however, will not be initiating R&D activities at Mohali.
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New norms on coal blocks soon
New Delhi, March 20 “We have nearly finalised a Cabinet note to seek approval on the newly framed guidelines for the coal blocks to be allocated to the core sector as was being demanded by them to enable them meet their coal crunch,” a senior Coal Ministry official said here. The Coal Ministry’s move apparently comes in the wake of Finance Minister P. Chidambaram mentioning about
deserving coal blocks for the core sector by 2012. Reacting to recent news reports that Mr Chidambaram had made the announcement without taking the Coal Ministry into confidence, the official said the ministry had already sent a detailed communication to the Finance Ministry after several rounds of meetings of the its advisory committee. He also refused to agree that dereserving of coal blocks for the core sector would spell disaster for Coal India Ltd and its subsidiaries, saying that coal exploration was a continuous process and those blocks hitherto lying unutilised would be dereserved and given on a first-come-first-serve basis. In reply to a question whether the core sector companies have the technical competence to extract coal even after the blocks are allocated, the official pleaded ignorance and refused to be drawn into the controversy, saying that “the matter be left to them at best. However, if they seek CIL’s technical help, it would be at a price. Finally, he had a word of caution for the prospective allottees, that even after allocation, the blocks are found lying idle for a considerable period, the committee of Secretaries reserves every right to delink the block and the company stood to lose its bank deposit.
— PTI
Tata Sponge
Mumbai: Tata Sponge Iron said today that the company, along with M/s Scaw Industries and SPS Sponge Iron, had been allotted a coal block by the Coal Ministry. The block contains ‘E’ to ‘G’ grade coals which would need to be washed in a coal washery to bring down the ash level before consumption in sponge iron kilns. The coal block is expected to become operational within 36 months from allotment.
— UNI
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Harpal Singh is CII Punjab council chief
Chandigarh, March 20 The Chairman of Fortis Healthcare Limited and the SRL Ranbaxy Limited, Mr Harpal Singh, is also the Chairman of Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre, the Fortis Financial Services Limited and the Fortis Securities Limited. He has a wide-ranging experience of over 30 years in the corporate sector. He is also involved in several premier educational institutions, including Doon School, Scindia School and Yadvindra School, at the Board level and is a member of the Senate of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot. Mr Rajinder Gupta is the Managing Director of the Abhishek Industries Limited, a Rs 9-billion flagship company of the Trident Group. Besides, Mr Gupta was shortlisted amongst top India Inc icons for Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards,
2004.
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CPSUs line up Rs 1,42,000-crore plans
New Delhi, March 20 As much as Rs 94,491 crore will be ploughed into seven key sectors of petroleum and natural gas, power, telecom, nuclear energy, coal, aviation and steel, an ASSOCHAM Eco Pulse (AEP) study has revealed. Thanks to improved topline and bottomline performance of the CPSUs, a tidy figure of Rs 66,257 crore would accrue from their internal accruals which also resulted from a healthy growth in the economy and the well-performing sectors that they are engaged in. These PSUs, the AEP analysis shows, would also tap the debt market to the extent of Rs 25,327 crore and would depend on external commercial borrowings (ECBs) for Rs 7,124 crore. ‘’The sustained GDP growth of over 8 per cent has contributed to the health of the PSUs. It is right time for the government to disinvest at least a minority stake in these firms,’’ ASSOCHAM President Anil K Agarwal said. The total Plan Investment of Rs 1,42,000 crore by the CPSUs for the next financial year would be 23.38 per cent higher than Rs 1,15,446 crore for the current fiscal ending March 2005-06. According to the ASSOCHAM study, the largest investment of Rs 36,003 crore would be pumped into the PSUs in the petroleum and natural gas sector. Investment of Rs 14,354 crore has already been approved for the ONGC, followed by ONGC Videsh Ltd at Rs 6,654 crore and Indian Oil Corporation at Rs 5,628 crore.
— UNI
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Trade policy
New Delhi, March 20 The review is likely to focus on employment generating sectors such as textiles, toys, leather, gems and jewellery, sports goods, stationery and processed foods in line with the recommendations of the Board of Trade.
— PTI
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Corporate News
Mumbai, March 20 “We want to become a big player in the publishing services space,” Infomedia Managing Director Prakash Iyer said on the sidelines of a press conference. “And to that end we believe it is a great fit.” The all-cash deal is expected to close by June 2007, Mr Iyer said. Noida-based International Typesetting, which provides publishing services to book publishers worldwide, is expected to close the year with $4 million in revenue. Infomedia has been trying to gain a foothold in publishing services. The publisher of yellow pages and Chip magazine had, in December, said it plans to acquire UK-based publishing outsourcing firm Keyword Group Ltd. and Bangalore-based Cepha Imaging Systems for $7 million. Tata Power
Tata Power Company Ltd has decided to invest Rs 860 crore for setting up power plant at its Trombay Thermal Station for augmenting power supply to Mumbai. The 250-MW power plant, scheduled to be completed in 28 months, would use imported coal with very low sulphur and ash content, the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Ceat in Lanka
India’s tyre giant Ceat will set up a new manufacturing unit in Sri Lanka with an investment of $300 million. Funding from local banks has just been finalised for the radial tyre project at
Kelaniya, a suburb of Colombo, Rohan Fernando, Managing Director of Kelani Tyres, which holds a 50 per cent stake in Ceat Kelani Associated Holdings, said. The balance is held by Associated Ceat, a joint venture between Ceat India and
AMW.
Gail’s choice
India’s natural gas major Gas Authority of India Ltd. (Gail) has selected Israeli firm ECI Telecom’s optical networking solutions as part of its nationwide carrier network expansion plans. ECI’s equipment will support GAIL’s long-haul SDH regional network, GAIL-Tel South Expansion, which will span thousands of kilometres and increase the Indian company’s capacity to deliver services as a carrier of carriers, a company press note said here.
Birla Sun Life
Birla Sun Life Insurance
(BSLI) after having made its mark in life insurance as a pioneer in the Bancassurance channel of distribution, has announced a tieup with five cooperative banks across India, namely Indian Mercantile Cooperative Bank, Lucknow; Krishna Mercantile Cooperative Bank, Bhopal; Thane Bharat Sahakari Bank, Mumbai; Nagaland State Cooperative Bank,
Dimapur; and Jamshedpur Urban Cooperative Bank, Jamshedpur, said Mr. Nani
Javeri, CEO, BSLI. — Agencies
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With Prime Minister Manmohan Singh favouring full float of the rupee, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said today the government and the RBI would in the next few days announce steps on capital account convertibility of the Indian currency.
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Dell is holding talks with several state governments for establishing a manufacturing facility in India, its Chairman Michael S. Dell said here today. Michael Dell said the process had taken “longer than we would have liked” but that the company considered it a long-term possibility to reach out to its growing customers in the country.
Mr Harpal Singh and Mr Rajinder Gupta were elected Chairman and Vice-Chairman, respectively, of the CII Punjab State Council for 2006-07 here today.
