New Delhi, October 11
British carrier Virgin Atlantic on Tuesday announced a strategic tieup with energy firm LanzaTech to develop in India a low carbon aviation fuel from steel that, the airline claims, will have just "half the carbon footprint of the standard fossil fuel alternative".

According to Virgin Atlantic, the "breakthrough aviation fuel technology" will see waste gases from industrial steel production being captured, fermented and chemically converted using Swedish Biofuels technology for use as a jet fuel.

India, which is among the world's largest steel producers, will be one of the first countries where the fuel will be produced as Lanzatech and partners develop facilities there and with three years and Virgin Atlantic hopes to fly Delhi to London Heathrow on the new fuel sometime in 2014.

The "revolutionary fuel production" will enable airlines to dramatically reduce their carbon footprint by reusing gases that would otherwise have been emitted directly into the atmosphere and promote sustainable industrial growth, as the process enables manufacturing plants to recycle their waste carbon emissions, a Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said.

Virgin President Richard Branson has termed the partnership with LanzaTech a breakthrough in aviation fuel technology and a major step toward radically reducing our carbon footprint. The technology is currently being piloted in New Zealand and following successful implementation, a wider roll-out could include operations in the UK and the rest of the world.

LanzaTech estimates the process can apply to 65 % of the world's steel mills, allowing the fuel to be rolled out for worldwide commercial use. The energy company believes this process can also apply to metals processing and chemical industries, growing its potential considerably further. Jet fuel constitutes a major part of airlines' operations costs.

Promoters say that with oil running out, it is important that new fuel solutions are sustainable. The steel industry has the potential to deliver over 15 billion gallons of jet fuel annually, they say, terming the new technology scalable, sustainable and commercially viable at a cost comparable to conventional jet fuel. The development will take the airline well beyond its pledge of a 30% carbon reduction per passenger km by 2020, they add.

The next generation technology overcomes the complex land use issues associated with some earlier generation biofuels and detailed analysis suggests the fuel will produce around a 50% saving in life cycle carbon emissions, maintains LanzaTech.

New Delhi, October 11
The government is "seriously" considering to raise the 51 per cent cap in foreign direct investment in single-brand retail business, Commerce & Industry Minister Anand Sharma said Tuesday.

"We are seriously considering to raise the bar further- that means to allow increased foreign direct investment," he said at a CII event on Indian luxury market here.

At present, the government allows 51 per cent foreign direct investment in single-brand retail businesses run by global chains like Adidas, Nike, Louis Vuitton, Hermes and Gucci.

However, he did not elaborate on how much percentage it needs to be raised. "How much it is, only when we take the decision you will get to know."

He promised that the government would create an enabling environment for investors. "You bring in FDI or partnership, surely it will be a game-changer."

Sharma said he would ask the finance ministry to lower tariff barriers as well.

"It’s the domain of the finance ministry. I’ll be meeting some (officials) of them today and we will see what we can do."

On the India-European Union free trade agreement, Sharma said the chief negotiators are engaged.

"This has taken us long. I’ve spoken to the European Union trade commissioner. We must bring it down to a closure...Once the free trade agreement is signed, it will open a pathway for greater cooperation among the nations."

India is in talks with the European Union, its biggest trading partner, since June 2007 for liberalising trade in goods, services and investment through a Broadbased Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA). Already 13 rounds of talks have taken place.

Dismissing credit ratings agency Crisil's lower gross domestic product (GDP) forecast of 7.6 per cent for 2011-12, he said: "India will definitely have 8 per cent growth because of its consumption patterns and higher saving rates."

Crisil has scaled down the fiscal 2011-12 growth projections for India in view of the deteriorating global economic scenario and "grim investment climate in India on account of the policy environment". — PTI

New Delhi, October 11
Notwithstanding China’s objections, India is expected to further intensify its cooperation with Vietnam in the hydrocarbon sector. The issue is likely to figure prominently during talks between Vietnam President Truong Tan Sang and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here on Wednesday.

Indian officials said the Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) could enter into joint ventures with Indonesian firms for city gas distribution in Vietnam. Preliminary talks on the issue have already been conducted.

India had recently rejected China’s objection over oil and gas exploration in the blocks offered to it by Vietnam in the South China Sea. Beijing claims full sovereignty over the entire South China Sea. It had asked all countries, including India, to refrain from undertaking any activity in South China Sea. India says its cooperation with China is in accordance with international laws.

Apart from cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector, intensification of defence and economic relationship will be high on the agenda of the two sides during President Truong’s visit.

For obvious reasons, Beijing will keep a close watch on the four-day visit of the Vietnamese leader in view of the complex relationship that China has with both India and Vietnam, two of its important neighbours.

A number of agreements, including an extradition treaty, are expected to be signed between India and Vietnam on Wednesday after the delegation-level talks between the two sides. President Truong has already arrived in Bangalore where he visited the Infosys Ltd on Tuesday.

Geneva/New Delhi, Oct 11
The amended Indo-Swiss taxation treaty has came into effect, a development that will allow India to seek specific information on “black money” and tax evasion cases dating back to January 1, 2011.

The revised taxation pact between the two countries came into force on Monday, at a time when the “black money” issue has triggered an intense political debate in India.

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani has said that he would highlight the issue during his 'Jan Chetna Yatra', starting Tuesday.

The Swiss Federal Department of Finance said on Monday the revised double taxation agreement with India in the area of taxes on income and capital entered into force on Monday. "It contains provisions on the exchange of information in accordance with international standards applicable at present," it said in a statement.

The treaty would be applicable in Switzerland on income originating in tax years starting on or after January 1, 2012. When it comes to the exchange of information, the provisions in the treaty would "apply to information referring to tax years which start on or after January 1, 2011".

The revised treaty would allow India to seek information on cases related to tax evasion. Under the earlier pact, India could only seek bank details in relation to tax fraud cases.

"The provisions of the agreement will apply in India to income originating in tax years which start on or after April 1, 2012," the statement by the Swiss Federal Department of Finance added.

The treaty will contribute to further the positive development of bilateral economic relations, it said.

The revised treaty was approved by the Swiss Parliament on June 17.

According to Swiss rules, bilateral tax treaties are subject to public scrutiny for a period of 100 days, which ended on October 6. India had inked the agreement with Switzerland to revise the treaty in August, 2010.

The latest data from the Swiss National Bank shows that the total deposits of Indian individuals and companies in Swiss banks stood at about US $2.5 billion at the end of 2010. — PTI

New Delhi, October 11
Indian companies raised Rs 9,582 crore through public issues in the first half of the current fiscal, a decline of 22% vis-a-vis the corresponding year-ago period, primary market tracking firm Prime Database said Tuesday. "The first half of the current fiscal has ended with mobilisation of only Rs 9,582 crore through public equity issues... This mobilisation is lower than Rs 12,280 crore in the corresponding period of the preceding year, representing a fall of 22%," the report said.

In terms of the number of issues, however, the first half of FY12 was similar to the previous fiscal. Thirty-one public issues were witnessed in the April-September period of 2011, compared to 32 issues in the year-ago period.

Of the Rs 9,582 crore raised through public issues in H1, FY12, Rs 5,004 crore was mopped up through 30 initial public offers and Rs 4,578 crore was garnered via one follow-on public offer (FPO).

"The biggest disappointment for the primary market has been the lack of divestment by the government. Only one divestment (PFC) took place in the first half of the current fiscal. The pipeline of divestment/PSU offerings continues to become larger by the day, yet nothing of it seems to be materialising," Prime Database said.

"This is as good a time as ever for the government to enlarge the investors' base and the capital market and to raise money that it so desperately needs. For this, besides IPOs, it should change the method of FPO offering by first doing a closed auction for QIBs and then a fixed price issue for retail," Prime added. — PTI