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Anil’s global dreams behind feud
Lipitor patent row ends
RNRL moves HC over gas from KG Basin
High ethanol price spells bonanza for Maharashtra sugar co-ops
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Core sector pulls down industrial growth
UB develops colourless whisky
Direct tax collection up 71%
PTL records 78% growth in tractor sales
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Anil’s global dreams behind feud
New Delhi, June 18 It is this very dream of Anil Ambani, the younger of the Ambani siblings, of making the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) a truly global entity with a foothold in a large number of countries that has apparently led to this latest round of feud between the heirs of the richest family in the country. MTN Group is the largest telecom company of South Africa with over 60 million subscribers spread over 20 countries in Africa and Middle-East. If Anil Ambani does manage to get the position (chairman) in the company following the share swap formula, it would give ADAG the strongest possible foothold globally. This, as a senior ADAG executive pointed out, along with its optic fiber spread in around 30 countries would make the group large entity with a global standing. If the MTN bid is successful, the merged company itself would have a subscriber base of close to a 100 million and rank it as the seventh largest in the world after the names of the likes of Vodafone and China Mobile. This, the ADAG officials feel, is the main reason for the latest round of bickering, which they also feel could be more bitter than the last public spat when they finally ended up splitting the Ambani empire. Over the past three years, their rivalry has also been simmering, but never boiled over until last week, when the older brother objected to the younger one creating a telecom giant, saying his permission is required for any sale of the family's shares. Experts also point out that the objection could also stem from the fact that the communications business initially was the dream project of Mukesh Ambani. After the objection from RIL, RCom has dismissed the formers claim, saying it was based on an agreement signed when the company was under the control of Reliance Industries. While the controversy surrounding the MTN deal is the latest in the unabated acrimony, the two brothers have been at it ever since the split. From aviation to gas to realty, the sparring between the Ambani brothers has been on, but has never reached the fever pitch of the present. The basis of several disputes lies in the agreements reached between the siblings in early 2006 — the gas sales purchase agreement , the non-competition agreement (NCA) and the trademark management agreement. Experts point out that the younger brother has often used the same agreements to thwart the elder brother's plans.
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New Delhi, June 18 The company said it has entered into an agreement with Pfizer to "settle most of the patent litigation worldwide involving atorvastatin (Lipitor), the world's most prescribed cholesterol-lowering medicine." This decision will allow for an earlier introduction of a generic formulation that will benefit patients and many healthcare systems throughout the world, it added. Lipitor is the world's largest selling drug with sales of 12.7 billion dollars last year. The agreement pertains solely to Ranbaxy and its affiliates and does not cover legal challenges to the Lipitor patent involving other generic manufacturers. Ranbaxy being a first generic challenger to Lipitor patent would hold the right to 180 days of marketing exclusivity in US, Ranbaxy said. Pfizer, however, said in a statement that the patent infringement litigation relating to Lipitor would continue in five European countries — Finland, Spain, Portugal, Denmark and Romania. Ranbaxy would also have a licence to sell Atorvastatin on varying dates in additional seven countries including Canada, Belgium, Netherland, Germany, Sweden, Italy and Australia. The agreement also covers the fixed dose combination of Atorvastatin-Amlodipine besylate (Caduet). The patent for the fixed dose combination expires in 2018. The settlement also resolves additional patent litigation between the companies involving the brands Accupril in the US and Viagra in Ecudor and all patent litigation with Ranbaxy relating to generic formulation of Quinapril hydrochloride in the US and Sildenafil in Ecuador. Ranbaxy has been challenging Lipitor's patent in various markets globally since 2003. — PTI
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RNRL moves HC over gas from KG Basin
Mumbai, June 18 RNRL lawyer Mahesh Agarwal, however, said RIL has denied that it has signed agreement with third parties. The matter came up for hearing before Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice V M Kanade. RIL and RNRL are already locked in a legal battle over the terms of the gas-supply agreement. Agarwal said RIL told the court that media reports about its agreement with other companies for gas supply were incorrect and RIL has already issued a clarification to the media regarding this. When the Reliance group was split between Mukesh and Anil, RIL had agreed to supply 28 million cubic metres of gas to RNRL for its proposed gas-powered electricity generation plant at Dadri in Uttar Pradesh. However, RNRL claimed that the gas supply agreement did not give it certainty of quantity, rate and duration of supply. The High Court's single bench last year had asked both parties to renegotiate the agreement. Since they failed to renegotiate, the matter is again before the division bench of the High Court and will come up for hearing next month.
— PTI |
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High ethanol price spells bonanza for Maharashtra sugar co-ops
Mumbai, June 18 Public sector oil companies will now pay Rs 21.50 per litre of ethanol. Transport and other charges to transport ethanol to the oil companies would be extra, according to state government sources. Maharashtra is one of the few states which is aggressively pushing for oil companies to blend motor fuels with 10 per cent ethanol. At present, the laws allow for a blend of five per cent ethanol. However, even this has not been made possible as sugar producers and oil companies could not agree on the procurement price of ethanol. "The oil companies had earlier agreed to pay between Rs 19.50 and Rs 20.50 per litre of ethanol," says Rajgopal Devara, commissioner for sugar. Sources say, the state's sugar co-operatives, which were to supply some 80 milllion litres of ethanol to petroleum companies, sold only a fraction of the amount. "Sugar co-operative found it more profitable to sell ethanol to distilleries," says a sugar co-operative official. Maharashtra has a flourishing country liquor industry, which sources ethanol from the sugar co-operatives by paying nearly Rs 22-23 per litre. Unlike in Brazil, ethanol is produced from molasses, a by-product of the sugar industry. However, as India struggles with high oil prices, a few sugar companies in northern India are experimenting with directly manufacturing ethanol from sugarcane juice. However, this technology is expensive and ethanol thus produced would be around Rs 24 per litre. Several of Maharashtra's politicians across party lines who control sugar co-operatives have been pushing higher prices of ethanol pegged to global oil prices in order to reap huge profits. Recently, when the Centre asked state governments to reduce excise duties after hiking petroleum prices, Maharashtra's finance minister Jayant Patil said New Delhi could pay slightly higher for ethanol and bring down the country's crude import bill substantially. With the Centre offering to pay higher procurement prices for ethanol, the Maharashtra government is to finalise the procedure to buy ethanol from sugar co-operatives in the state. Prominent sugar companies like Bajaj Hindusthan and Renuka Sugars are aggressively installing technology which could enable them to switch between sugar and ethanol depending upon demand.
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Core sector pulls down industrial growth
New Delhi, June 18 The six core infrastructure industries — crude oil, petroleum refinery products, coal, electricity, cement and finished carbon steel — had registered a 9.6 per cent growth in the preceding month of March. The rise in production in some sectors can be seen in the growth of the industrial sector which recovered to 7.1 per cent in April 2008 as against a dip of 3.9 per cent in the month of March 2008. Despite the present pickup in industrial performance, the growth has slowed down in the present year as against last year, when the growth was 11.3 per cent in April 2007. Of the six industries, which have a combined weight of 26.7 per cent in the overall index of industrial production, refinery products’ growth slowed down considerably to a mere 4.3 per cent in April’08 from 15.1 per cent in the same month last year. Crude oil growth came down to 0.9 per cent from 1.4 per cent. Similarly, electricity generation growth was down to 1.4 per cent from a robust 8.7 per cent in April 2007. However, three sectors — coal, cement and finished carbon steel — registered good growth rates. In April 2008, coal output grew by 10.3 per cent to 34.98 million tonnes as against 31.72 million tonnes in April 2007. Cement production stood at 15,520 thousand tonnes in April 2008, as against 14,520 thousand tonnes in April 2007. Steel production also showed a rise to 4,137 thousand tonnes in April 2008, as against 3,979 thousand tones in April 2007.
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UB develops colourless whisky
London, June 18 "We have not only developed colourless whisky and diet whisky but we are the patent holders as well," UB Group chairman Vijay Mallya said while speaking on 'Entrepreneurship and Leadership in the 21st Century' at the London Business School here. "We are fighting with the European Union for the classification (of the new spirits)," he added. When asked about the secret behind his success, he said, "Self-confidence and thinking outside the box" were factors responsible for his achievements.
— PTI |
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Direct tax collection up 71%
New Delhi, June 18 The growth in personal income tax was the highest with 73.05 per cent at Rs146.9 billion, against Rs 84.89 billion, while the corporate tax mop-up was higher by 68 per cent at Rs 81.26 billion against Rs 48.35 billion. Direct tax collection has been witnessing a high growth due to better tax compliance by the taxpayers and an improved tax administration, a statement issued by the finance ministry said . In 2007-08, direct tax collection was Rs 3,144.68 billion. This represents an increase of 36.62 per cent over the previous fiscal, and 117.56 per cent of the original budget estimates, the FM had said.
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PTL records 78% growth in tractor sales
Mohali, June 18 Choudhari said after the takeover of Punjab Tractors management by the new team, all out efforts started to bring back vibrancy in the organisation. These efforts resulted in a massive improvement in the performance in the second half of the last fiscal compared to first half. |
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There is a saying: "To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe."
It is this very dream of Anil Ambani, the younger of the Ambani siblings, of making the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group
(ADAG) a truly global entity with a foothold in a large number of countries that has apparently led to this latest round of feud between the heirs of the richest family in the country.
