 |
|
|
Iran, India disagree over gas price
Review gas deal rejection, pleads Anil Ambani
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
RIL signs relief pact with petrol dealers
Bharti-Airtel announces $100 m deal with IBM
GM zeroes in on Maharashtra for car unit
Mittal Steel to contest ruling
Ranbaxy gets edge over Pfizer in patent row
HP for investment by coop banks in tourism
Hutch eager to complete BPL deal
Caparo India, Itochu Steel to set up jv
FDI cap up to 100 pc in coal
BPO catches fancy of private banks
Financial powers of Navratnas hiked
SpiceJet to add 5 aircraft
Kawasaki not to produce parts for Airbus
|
|
Iran, India disagree over gas price
New Delhi, August 3 “An expert committee comprising three members from each side has been formed to look into the issue and report to us at the start of the second round of discussions tomorrow morning,” India’s Petroleum Secretary M.S. Srinivasan told reporters after the meeting. Admitting that the difference between the price offered by Iran and India was 60 per cent, he said: “Differences have narrowed down in the sense that all sides have agreed to discuss in detail the issue at an expert committee level.” Pakistan’s Petroleum Secretary Ahmed Waqar said New Delhi and Islamabad were one on the pricing issue and presented a common approach at the meeting. Iran is seeking a price of $7.2 per million British thermal units, with a 3 per cent annual increase while India is not prepared to pay more than $4.25 per million British thermal units at its border. Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Nejad Hossenian, however, expressed optimism about finding a breakthrough in the deadlock. “I am confident about the project... it will happen,” he said but refused to comment on the price Iran was seeking. Mr Mukhtar Ahmed, Energy Adviser to the Pakistani Prime Minister, said that Islamabad would go ahead with the project even if India backed out. Sources said Teheran was hard-selling the formula, saying that it could get $7.8 per mBtu price for the gas if it liquefied it and sold it to the USA and Europe as LNG. The National Iranian Gas Export Co (NIGEC) in a presentation stated that LNG prices by 2010, the time the pipeline is to come, would firm up to $8-9 per mBtu. Indians felt that LNG was no option for Iran, which is facing US sanctions, as Teheran had no access to the technology to liquefy gas and thus had only South Asia as natural market. Officials of the three sides would meet again tomorrow on the issue. Iran wanted a price equivalent to 0.1 per cent of the ruling Brent crude oil price, plus a fixed cost of $1.2 per mBtu. At $60 per barrel, the average Brent price during recent times, this translated into a price of $7.2 per mBtu at Iran-Pakistan border. Added to this would be the cost of transporting the gas through Pakistani territory. But New Delhi was willing to pay no more than $4.25 per mBtu for gas delivered through the 2,100-km line at its border, they said. |
|
Review gas deal rejection, pleads Anil Ambani
New Delhi, August 3 Mr Ambani, who met senior Petroleum Ministry officials, including Secretary M.S. Srinivasan, to make a case for review of the last week’s decision, said the government estimate of revenue losses due to the sale was only notional, sources in the know said. However, government officials are believed to have told Mr Ambani that the gas price had a direct bearing on government revenues and it could not allow “a deal between two brothers arrived on the sidelines of a demerger agreement to be passed on as a price arrived at arms-length basis”. The sources said the officials also told Mr Ambani that the NTPC price mentioned by RNRL had never come to the ministry for approval and to say that, that price could apply for all gas from RIL’s K-G basin field would be incorrect. RNRL had said in a statement yesterday that the government’s estimates on losses it would incur if it allowed the gas sale was “notional and grossly overstated”. “The Panna/Mukta-Tapti (gas fields operated by RIL) price of $4.75 per mmBtu was not a comparable benchmark, as it was a short-term price for three years, while the RNRL deal is for a 17 year contract,” the statement said.
— PTI |
|
RIL signs relief pact with petrol dealers
New Delhi, August 3 The concession agreement includes waiving off network usage charges and a substantial increase in diesel margins. Further, the company has agreed to bear the cost of interest on loans for three months and has even negotiated with banks to re-schedule dealers’ loan repayments. RIL, which priced petrol and diesel at Rs 2.50 per litre higher than public sector firms, has seen diesel sales plummet about 70 per cent in June and July leading to a fall in the market share to below 2 per cent from 14 per cent. Besides enhancing the margins by 70-100 per cent, it has also agreed to consider converting pumps into company-owned outlets on a case-to-case basis and would in future set up only company-owned outlets, industry sources said.
— PTI |
|
Bharti-Airtel announces $100 m deal with IBM
New Delhi, August 3 “Bharti has partnered with IBM to deliver India’s first “service delivery platform” to enable it to deliver a suit of new range of services to its over 25 million customers,” Bharti-Airtel President Manoj Kohli said here, adding that Airtel was investing over $100 million in this delivery platform. time now. IBM will develop, manage and operate the service delivery platform IBM has been managing the telecom network operations of Bharti-Airtel for some for Airtel. The platform will enable Bharti to have an integrated environment that will incorporate all of Airtel’s content and application services under one
platform. — PTI |
|
GM zeroes in on Maharashtra for car unit
Mumbai, August 3 The export-oriented facility would generate employment to the tune of 3,000 within three years, a top government official said here. “The company chose Talegaon, near Pune, for its mega project after considering 20 locations in five states, including Tamil Nadu. The negotiations in this regard had been on for more than eight months,” Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation CEO Rajiv Jalota said. The MIDC would set up a container hub near Talegaon as the company plans to use this facility for its export activities. The state has already announced setting up of a 1,000 MW power plant near Talegaon, aiming to fuel the rapid industrial growth in the area. “This is perhaps the biggest investment in the auto sector in the state in the past few years and the company would set up a complete manufacturing plant with a production capacity of around one lakh cars and not restricting its activities to mere assembling,” sources said. Last year, the government had initiated a unique auto-cluster in the industrial town of Pimpri-Chinchwad to strengthen the manufacturing activities there. Interestingly, IT city Pune, earlier known as the ‘Detroit of India’ due to vast auto manufacturing units located there, expects more investments in this
sector. — PTI |
|
Mittal Steel to contest ruling
Sao Paulo, August 3 While analysts said the side deal could raise the estimated cost of the $31.9 billion merger by another $5 billion, an Arcelor Brasil executive noted that the Brazilian Security and Exchange Commission didn’t say how much compensation Arcelor Brasil’s minority shareholders should receive. Regulators “didn’t specify an amount or method of payment for the offer,” Mr Leonardo Horta, Arcelor Brasil’s Director of Investor Relations, told reporters. Mittal, based in the Netherlands, claimed yesterday that there was no change of control in Arcelor, headquartered in Luxembourg, and that it did not have to make an offer for Arcelor Brasil SA. However, Brazilian regulators who scrutinised the deal said the day before that Mittal is “legally bound” to buy out minority shareholders of Arcelor Brasil, though not Acesita SA, which is controlled by Arcelor. Arcelor and Mittal are trying to create a steel giant with close to 10 per cent of the global production that will save the combined operations some $1.6 billion a year.
— AP |
|
Ranbaxy gets edge over Pfizer in patent row
New Delhi, August 3 The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) has handed down a judgment in its case challenging two key Atorvastatin patents held by global drugs major Pfizer. The CAFC has apparently sided with Ranbaxy by invalidating one of Pfizer’s Atorvastatin patents, US patent no 5,273,995 (‘995) and overturning Delaware District Court’s judgement in this regard, a company statement said today. However, it affirmed the portion of the judgement, which held that the company’s product infringes Pfizer’s US patent no 4,681,893 (‘893). The launch of Atorvastatin will be subject to the appellate process and market authorisation by the US FDA, with an 180-day exclusivity in the US market. “We are pleased by the court’s decision on the ‘995 patent and are evaluating our options with respect to the ‘893 patent,” Company’s Senior Vice-President Jay R. Deshmukh said. Atorvastatin is marketed by Pfizer as Lipitor, and is the largest selling drug in the world with estimated annual sales of $8.5 billion in the US.
— UNI |
|
HP for investment by coop banks in tourism
Shimla, August 3 This was stated by Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, while interacting with the visiting Central Drought Relief Committee headed by Mr Satish Chandra, here today. He said the hill state had a vast potential for hydropower tourism to exploit where investment was needed. He said the state would approach the Union Finance Ministry and the Reserve Bank of India so that cooperative banks could be allowed to fund projects in these two sectors. Mr Virbhadra Singh sought liberal central assistance for adoption of long term measures to overcome the drought conditions permanently in the state. He said that the unpredictable drought conditions had been responsible for hampering development and some long term measures were required to solve the problem once for all. He requested the central committee to plead the states case before the Union Government. The state had achieved the target of providing drinking water to all the villages decades ago but a number of schemes had become inadequate due to the drying up of their sources. Besides some schemes required remodelling and augmentation to ensure adequate water supply. He said construction of check dams, revival of traditional water bodies, boring of hand pumps, tubewells, irrigation channels, reservoirs, encouraging rain water harvesting in government and private buildings, were some of the measures which needed immediate attention. The Chief Minister said habitations in the upper hills areas which were being fed by gravity water schemes had been affected as sources had dried up due to global warming and changing climatic conditions. These were being remodelled and augmented by lifting water from the sources in the lower valleys which was costing the state heavily. |
|
Hutch eager to complete BPL deal
Mumbai, August 3 This was stated by the counsels of Hutch and Essar, who have been at loggerheads over the merger of BPL Mobile’s Mumbai circle with their telecom joint venture, at the Bombay High Court. At the hearing of an arbitration petition filed by Hutch, seeking to restrain Essar from selling BPL stake to any third party, Hutchison-Essar said it would acquire the DoT’s approval once the deal is completed and offered to pay remaining Rs 1,670 crore to the other side for completing the financial transactions. Hutchison-Essar had earlier paid Rs 1,600 crore to Indian partner Essar as part payment for acquiring 100 per cent stake of BPL. Subsequent to the termination of the deal, Essar has offered to return the money within five days.
— PTI |
|
Caparo India, Itochu Steel to set up jv
Tokyo, August 3 An agreement was signed here and the joint venture company was christened as Caparo Marubeni Itochu Steel Inc. The unit, to be set up in Gurgaon, would have a capacity to produce 6,000 tonnes tailor- welded blanks per annum, it said. Caparo Engineering India, a subsidiary of the London-based Caparo group, would hold a majority 70 per cent stake in the joint venture. The facility would be operational by July next
year. — PTI |
|||||
|
FDI cap up to 100 pc in coal
New Delhi, August 3 A decision on the route to modernise Kolkata and Chennai airports would be taken in the next few months, the minister said during question hour. Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel justified the increase in domestic air fares five times in the past three years and international fares by six times in two years. Commercial organisations had to act on business principles. He pointed out that the cost of operations had risen because of An abnormal increase in fuel prices from Rs 27,000 per kilo litre two years ago to Rs 43,600 per kilolitre today. Taxes levied by the states should also come down for reducing the fares. The central excise rates have already been reduced from 16 per cent to 8 per cent. He maintained that Air-India had not carried out any fare hike during the past three years and the fares have, in fact, declined by an average 2-3 per cent. The government has decided to increase the FDI cap to 100 per cent and permit it under the automatic route for coal and lignite mining for captive consumption by power projects, iron and steel, cement production and other activities, Minister of State for Coal Dasari Narayana Rao informed the Rajya Sabha today. The minister said in a written reply that FDI was permitted only in respect of captive mining of coal and lignite for specified end uses. |
|||||
|
BPO catches fancy of private banks
Chandigarh, August 3 HSBC and HDFC have taken the lead in the field and are vying to get a sizeable pie of the financial and banking services outsourced by companies in the US and UK. A recent report by NASSCOM says the outsourcing operations in India are set to be a $12-billion business in the coming years. These BPOs/Indian service providers are providing services like preparation of payroll and payroll tax returns, besides taking care of all tax deposit requirements, write-up services (check registers, cash receipts and sales journals, bank statements and other items to reconcile your bank accounts) and create a general ledger and financial statements). Ms Renu Sud Karnad, Executive Director, HDFC, who was in town today along with HDFC Chairman Deepak Parikh to inaugurate a new branch office, said, “Our BPOs, Intelnet and Sparsh at Mumbai, have been getting a lot of business from the US-and UK-based companies. Last year, our outsourcing operations yielded a turnover of Rs 269.19 crore. This year, with our client list increasing substantially, we hope to achieve a growth of 20-30 per cent”. On the other hand, HSBC, which employees over 8,000 people in its BPO operations, too, is planning to expand base. Ms Naina Lal Kidwai, CEO, during a recent visit to the city had said that they would be investing Rs 500 crore in these operations. Ms Karnad said they had already employed 10,000 persons for these operations. “Though India is an extremely popular outsourcing location and has proven capable of managing a range of processes of varying complexity, we now face a challenge from Indonesia and countries in the Eastern European block,” she said. |
|||||
|
Financial powers of Navratnas hiked
New Delhi, August 3 This decision follows the acceptance of some recommendations of an ad hoc Group of experts (AGE), led by noted economist Arjun Sengupta, on empowerment of CPSUs, Heavy Industries Minister Santosh Mohan Deb said. “The government has accepted some of the recommendations of the AGE relating to enhancement of the financial powers of Navratnas, miniratnas and other profit-making CPSUs and the office memodranda have been accordingly issued...,” he said Most of the remaining recommendations of the AGE concerning ownership issues, audit of government companies by the CAG, accountability to Parliament and vigilance management in CPSUs related to the jurisdiction of constitutional and parliamentary authorities and required further in-depth
analysis. — PTI |
|||||
|
SpiceJet to add 5 aircraft
Mumbai, August 3 Meanwhile, SpiceJet has reported a net loss of Rs 13 crore in the fourth quarter ended May, 2006, while the same for the full year stood at Rs 41 crore. The company said its total income during the fourth quarter stood at Rs 154 crore while it was Rs 453.14 crore for the full year. Chairman Shiddhanta Sharma said “we expect to break even at the net level this fiscal although we have been able to achieve operating profits in the first year itself,” Mr Sharma said, adding that the carrier was targeting a turnover of Rs 910 crore this fiscal.
— PTI |
|||||
|
Kawasaki not to produce parts for Airbus
Tokyo, August 3 The Japanese company will not renew its contract which ends in March “for simple business reasons,” a Kawasaki spokesman said today. Kawasaki has been producing wing panels for the Airbus A321 since
1991. — AFP |
|||||
bb
IOC-Calik plan refinery FinnOne solution Helion fund |
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
