Corporate Sector News

[Pintu]

Hero Electric plans to assemble e-scooter in foreign mkts

Hero Electric plans to assemble e-scooter in foreign mkts
Press Trust of India / New Delhi December 07, 2009, 16:56 IST

Two-wheeler maker Hero Electric today said it plans to assemble e-scooters in foreign markets in collaboration with local players and may enter into such agreements within the next one year.

"We are looking at assembly units in overseas markets, mainly in Western Europe and North America, in collaboration with local manufacturers. We are positive of entering into some such agreement within next 12 months," Hero Electric Managing Director Naveen Munjal told PTI.

He said local assembly of models will help in issues like cost factor and staffing.

However, Hero Electric will not go for contract manufacturing and will sell its electric scooters under the company's brand.

"There will be no contract manufacturing. Rather we will have collaboration on a case-by-case basis. And we will stick to our own brand," Munjal said.

The company's decision comes on the heels of its announcement last month to start exports to Latin America and Europe by the end of the fiscal.

Hero Electric currently sells five models -- E-Sprint, Maxi, Optima Plus, Wave Dx and Wave Dx Extra Mile -- and last year it exported a small number to the neighbouring SAARC countries and Canada.

 

[Pintu]

Volkswagen aims for a tenth of India market in 4-6 years- Automobiles-Auto-News By Industry-News-The Economic Times

Volkswagen aims for a tenth of India market in 4-6 years
12 Dec 2009, 1841 hrs IST, REUTERS

MUMBAI: Volkswagen AG, which recently took a stake in Suzuki Motor Corp to step up its presence in India, said it aims to grab 8-10 percent of the country's market share in the next 4-6 years.

The German automaker on Saturday launched production of its Polo hatchback
, which had its European debut earlier this year, in its plant in western India. It said it sees the need for a smaller car in the Indian market.

"We know that we need a car below the level of the Polo," said Jochem Heizmann, a member of the board of Volkswagen. "We are working towards this but no decision has been made yet."

Volkswagen and Suzuki Motor plan to develop a new small car that would cost between $4,300 and $5,400 for the Indian market, following their recent tie-up, a newspaper reported this week.

Volkswagen will buy a one-fifth stake in Suzuki Motor for $2.5 billion, tapping the Japanese firm's expertise in small cars and dominance in India as VW seeks to become the No.1 automaker, the companies said earlier in the week.

Volkswagen is looking at various opportunities for synergies with Suzuki, Heizmann said, declining to give details. He added the firm could consider bringing to India the cheapest car on its table, Up, which is priced at about $8,800.

It has set a target to localise production in India to about 80 percent in 2-3 years from the current levels of almost 50 percent as it seeks to offer cars at more competitive prices.

The western Indian plant, which has an annual capacity of 110,000 cars, will produce 3 models - the Polo, the Skoda Fabia and a saloon - that will be launched in the second half of 2010, it said.

The Polo is expected to start selling in March 2010 but Volkswagen declined to give price details.

The company expects to expand its dealer network in India to around 200 showrooms for the Volkswagen Skoda and Audi brands over the next 2-3 years.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

Reliance biggest wealth creator in FY 09​

Mumbai: Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has emerged as the biggest wealth creator in FY 09, generating Rs 1,51,400-crore, which accounted for over 15% of the total wealth created last year, a study said. Brokerage firm Motilal Oswal, in a study released on Thursday, said oil and gas continues to be the biggest wealth creator during the last six-years--the first three years led by state-run ONGC and the next three by RIL.

"Reliance Industries has emerged as the biggest wealth creator for the third time in a row. It has created Rs 1,514- billion worth of wealth contributing 15.6% of total wealth created in FY 09," the study titled '14th Motilal Oswal Wealth Creation Study' said. The Mukesh Ambani-led company is the largest contributor of wealth for the third time in a row, while real estate firm Unitech was the fastest wealth creater since 2004, the study said.

Motilal said that Unitech's five-year stock price recorded a staggering compound growth of 122%. Apart from RIL, home-loan lender HDFC, Pharma company Sun Pharma, auto major Hero Honda and software exporter Infosys Technologies have emerged among the top 100 wealth creators in the past 10-years. "HDFC is ranked as the most consistent wealth creator by virtue of its 10-year price CAGR (compound annual growth rate) being the highest," the study said.

Link

 

[Pintu]

Reliance biggest wealth creator in FY09, Unitech fastest- Hindustan Times

Reliance biggest wealth creator in FY09, Unitech fastest

Press Trust Of India
Mumbai, December 17, 2009
First Published: 19:29 IST(17/12/2009)
Last Updated: 19:33 IST(17/12/2009)

The country's largest company Reliance Industries has emerged as the biggest wealth creator in the 2009 fiscal, generating Rs 1,51,400 crore, which accounted for over 15 per cent of the total wealth created during the year in the country, a study has said.

Leading brokerage firm Motilal Oswal, in a study released here today, said oil and gas has been the biggest wealth creator during the past six years--the first three years led by state-run oil and gas major ONGC and the next three by RIL.

"Reliance Industries has emerged as the biggest wealth creator for the third time in a row. It has created Rs 1,514 billion worth of wealth, contributing 15.6 per cent of total wealth created in FY09," the study titled '14th Motilal Oswal Wealth Creation Study' said.

The Mukesh Ambani-led petrochemicals and energy major is the largest contributor of wealth for the third time in a row, while real estate company Unitech was the fastest wealth creator since 2004, the study said, adding Unitech's five-year stock price had a staggering CAGR of 122 per cent.

Apart from RIL, home-loan lender HDFC, pharma company Sun Pharma, auto major Hero Honda and software exporter Infosys have emerged among the top 100 wealth creators in the past one decade.

"HDFC is ranked as the most consistent wealth creator by virtue of its 10-year price CAGR (compound annual growth rate) being the highest," the study said.

 

[Pintu]

Citi to raise $20.5 billion to pay back US government- International Business-News-The Economic Times

Citi to raise $20.5 billion to pay back US government
17 Dec 2009, 1138 hrs IST, IANS

NEW YORK: Citigroup, led by Indian American chief executive Vikram Pandit, intends to raise $20.5 billion in the stock market as part of its plan to repay bailout money and free itself from government restrictions.

The New York-based banking giant said Wednesday it will offer 5.4 billion shares of common stock priced at $3.15 per share, 10 cents below what the Treasury paid for each of its 7.7 billion shares. It will also offer 35 million "tangible equity units," which are comprised of a prepaid stock purchase contract and a note, for $100 each

The stock offering is expected to raise $17 billion, while the tangible equity units could bring in another $3.5 billion. Citi said the combined offering is the largest public equity offering in US history.

Citi also confirmed reports that the Treasury, which holds a 34 percent stake in the bank, had decided not to sell any of its shares in connection with the offering, but did not say why. The Treasury also extended the "lock-up period" on the sale of its 7.7 billion shares to 90 days from 45 days, Citi said.

But the Wall Street said US government abruptly shelved plans to sell as much as $5 billion of stock in Citigroup Inc as part of the payback plan after investors demanded a price so low that the Treasury Department would have lost money on the deal.

The huge offering encountered a lukewarm reception on Wall Street, where investors were skeptical of the company's earnings prospects and had already spent heavily on shares of rival banks this week, it said.

Citigroup said it would no longer be considered a recipient of "exceptional financial assistance" under the Treasury Department's Troubled Asset Relief Programme once the offering is complete and the loss-sharing agreement it has with the government is terminated.

That would free Citi from government imposed restraints on, among other things, executive compensation.

Citigroup became one of the biggest recipients of bailout money last year after the government injected $45 billion into the company to help stabilize the embattled lender.

Concerned about the company's underlying health and ability to endure future loan losses, the government converted $25 billion of its preferred-stock stake in the company into common stock over the summer.

 

[Pintu]

Aurobindo Pharma gets US FDA nod for anti-allergic syrup

Aurobindo Pharma gets US FDA nod for anti-allergic syrup

Agencies
Posted: Thursday, Dec 17, 2009 at 1443 hrs IST
Updated: Thursday, Dec 17, 2009 at 1443 hrs IST

Mumbai: Aurobindo Pharma said it has received the final approval from the US drug regulator for its anti-allergic syrup.

"The company has received final approval for Cetirizine Hydrochloride syrup from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)," Aurobindo Pharma Ltd said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

The approval for the syrup is in the strength of 1mg/ml, the company said.

Cetirizine Hydrochloride syrup is indicated for relief of symptoms associated with seasonal allergic rhinitis in adults and children above two years of age and falls under the anti-allergic segment.

It is the generic equivalent of McNeil Consumer Healthcare's Zyrtec syrup.

Aurobindo has a total of 110 ANDA (abbreviated new drug application) approvals, including 82 final and 28 tentative from the US FDA, it added.

Shares of Aurobindo Pharma were trading at Rs 887.25, up 0.90 per cent in late afternoon trade on the BSE.

 

[Pintu]

Genpact wins contract from AstraZeneca

Genpact wins contract from AstraZeneca

Agencies
Posted: Saturday, Dec 12, 2009 at 1741 hrs IST
Updated: Saturday, Dec 12, 2009 at 1741 hrs IST

New York: Genpact announced it has signed a five-year contract to provide global Finance & Accounting (F&A) services to AstraZeneca, one of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies.

Under the terms of the contract, skilled Genpact professionals will work in partnership with the company’s finance team to boost the effectiveness of some of AstraZeneca’s finance and accounting processes as part of the company’s corporate initiative to reduce costs. The multi-million dollar contract will deliver services to over 50 countries.

Commenting on the partnership Graham Russell, Head of Global Transactional Finance AstraZeneca, said, “Streamlining our business processes will enable us to improve the effectiveness of AstraZeneca’s finance function in driving, measuring and reporting business performance, while simultaneously reducing the costs of the finance function.”

Genpact’s F&A practice currently supports more than 80 global enterprises, including five pharmaceutical and two life sciences companies. The partnership with AstraZeneca will further expand Genpact’s client base and broaden its experience in the Life Sciences industry. Leveraging best practices developed through more than a decade of experience in F&A services, Genpact’s F&A experts will provide AstraZeneca with support in a range of areas including procure-to-pay, record-to-report and order-to-cash services. AstraZeneca conducted a competitive search before selecting Genpact.

“We are delighted to be chosen by AstraZeneca to streamline their Finance & Accounting operations,” said Pramod Bhasin, Genpact’s President & CEO.

 

[Pintu]

Taro accuses Sun of waging proxy war

Taro accuses Sun of waging proxy war

Agencies
Posted: Wednesday, Dec 09, 2009 at 1818 hrs IST
Updated: Wednesday, Dec 09, 2009 at 1818 hrs IST

New Delhi: Israeli drug maker Taro Pharma has alleged that Sun Pharma is attempting to seize its control by waging a proxy war.

Seeking the support of its shareholders, Taro chairman and managing director Barrie Levitt said, “we believe that Sun may now attempt to seize the control of your company by waging a proxy fight to gain control of the Taro board.” When contacted Sun spokesperson said the allegations made by Taro promoters in a letter written to its shareholders is a desperate attempt to draw the attention of its shareholders away from such proposed resolutions at the upcoming AGM.

Taro and Sun had entered into a USD 454-million merger agreement in 2007, but later the Israeli firm unilaterally terminated the deal citing undervaluation. After this, both companies dragged each other to court and the matter is still pending in the Israeli Supreme Court.

Levitt said Sun has been trying to increase its stake in Taro by attempting to exercise warrants. “We are concerned that if Sun seizes control of Taro, minority shareholders may fall victim to the same fate as the minority shareholders of another Sun-controlled public company Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories,” the letter said.

Taro also urged its shareholders to keep chairman Levitt and the current board and reject Sun Pharma.

Recently investment firm Templeton had withdrawn its appeal filed in the Israeli supreme court against Sun’s open offer in Taro.

Sun has currently 36 per cent stake in the Israeli firm, whose annual general meeting is scheduled to be held on December 31.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

Mukesh Ambani ranked fifth best CEO in the world

Mukesh Ambani, who heads India’s most valuable company Reliance Industries, has been ranked among top five best performing CEOs in the world by the prestigious Harvard Business Review.

Mr. Ambani, the only Indian to feature among top 50 CEOs, is in the same league as Steve Jobs of Apple, Yun Jong—Yong of Samsung Electronics, Russian energy firm Gazprom’s Alexey Miller and John Chambers of Cisco Systems.

He is also ranked number two among the top 10 emerging market CEOs with Miller at the top.

K. V. Kamath of ICICI Bank is the other Indian in the list of Top 10 Emerging Market CEOs. He is ranked at number 9.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

Tata to build Ramanujan IT City

Tata Realty and Infrastructure Limited (TRIL), a 100 per cent subsidiary of Tata Sons, has announced plans to develop ‘Ramanujan IT City’, a commercial and residential project at Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) in Taramani, Chennai. This project also envisages development of a premium residential community, Cambridge Greens, which will be ready for occupation by mid-2011.

Ramanujan IT City is an IT special economic zone (SEZ) to be built on 26 acres. The Rs. 3,500-crore project is promoted by TRIL Infopark Limited, a joint venture between Tata Realty & Infrastructure, Tamilnadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) and Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL). The hi-tech integrated development would consist of a notified IT/ITeS along with residential apartments, a premium retail mall and entertainment, serviced apartments and an international convention centre. Ramanujan IT City is a tribute by the Tata Group to the legendary mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

CNG variant of auto from TVS Motor

TVS Motor Company, on Monday, launched its new 200cc, four-stroke engine CNG auto-rickshaw — TVS King ZS — priced at Rs. 1.24 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). It also announced its intention to launch diesel auto-rickshaws as part of its strategy to grow in the domestic market. The company, which started export of its three-wheelers a couple of months back, is also exploring to venture into new markets like Bangladesh, Mexico, Peru and Guatemala. “Our next plan is to enter the diesel passenger market in the auto-rickshaw category of three-wheelers and we should be able to accomplish this within the next 18-24 months,” President (Marketing) H. S. Goindi told reporters here.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

Citigroup repays $20 billion to US

New York: Citigroup Inc repaid USD 20 billion to the United States, as the bank works to reduce government involvement in its compensation practices. The bank sold USD 17 billion in common shares and USD 3.5 billion in convertible notes to help raise capital to repay the government.

Citigroup received USD 45 billion under the US Troubled Asset Relief Program last year over two separate bailouts. In a third bailout this year, the US agreed to swap the Citigroup preferred shares it owned into USD 25 billion of common stock and another USD 20 billion of more debt-like securities.

Citigroup has repaid the USD 20 billion, but taxpayers still own common stock in the bank that is now worth about USD 25.2 billion.

 

[Pintu]

Maharatna status for mega PSUs gets nod - India Business - Biz - The Times of India

Maharatna status for mega PSUs gets nod
TNN 25 December 2009, 01:57am IST

NEW DELHI: Mega PSUs ONGC, SAIL and NTPC will get greater financial and operational autonomy with the government on Thursday approving a policy for creating a `Maharatna' category of top performing state-owned firms to enable them become global giants.

The decision to grant top performing PSUs the `Maharatna' status was taken at the meeting of the Union Cabinet. "The main objective of the Maharatna scheme is to empower mega CPSEs to expand their operations and emerge as global giants", I&B minister Ambika Soni told reporters after the meeting.

Of the 18 Navaratnas, SAIL, ONGC and NTPC met the stiff criteria set by the government, including a three-year track record of annual net profit
of over Rs 5,000 crore, net worth of Rs 15,000 crore and turnover of Rs 25,000 crore, besides being listed entities in the bourses.

The coveted status empowers the boards of these firms to take investment decisions up to Rs 5,000 crore as against the present Rs 1,000 crore limit without seeking government approval.

The Maharatna firms would now be free to decide on investments up to 15% of their net worth in a project, limited to an absolute ceiling of Rs 5,000 crore.

Earlier, the Navaratna companies could invest up to Rs 1,000 crore without government approval.

"However, the overall ceiling on such equity investments and mergers and acquisitions in all projects put together will not exceed 30% of net worth of the CPSE," Soni said.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

NMDC aims to raise $4.9 bn through share sale

Mumbai: The government is hoping to raise over Rs.230 billion ($4.9 billion) from the sale of a stake in iron ore miner National Mineral Development Corp, a newspaper report said on Saturday. The public offering is likely to take place in March 2010, the report said, citing finance ministry sources.

Since August, the Indian government has raised $1.8 billion by selling shares in NHPC and Oil India, while it has approved the sale of shares in NTPC, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam and Rural Electrification Corp.

 

[Pintu]

Samsung to more than double its CDMA-based phone models- Telecom-News By Industry-News-The Economic Times

Samsung to more than double its CDMA-based phone models
29 Dec 2009, 1811 hrs IST, PTI

CHENNAI: Electronics and home appliances manufacturer Samsung India today said it would more than double the number of its CDMA-based phone models to 15 by end of next year to tap the Open Market Handset segment.

Open Market Handsets (OMHs) are those which are available in the market directly from retailers compared to CDMA phones which were available only with the telecom operators, Samsung India Electronics Vice-President-HHP Division Hendrick Lee told reporters here.

"Currently we have seven CDMA phones. With the launch of these phones it would reach nine by January 2010. We want to take it by 15 by end of 2010," he said.

"The OMH market is expected to reach 30 per cent in 2010. It is currently 20 per cent as compared to five per cent in 2007-08, and with this growth we expect the market size of CDMA mobile phones to expand in future," he said.

The company in 2003 entered the CDMA category bundled with various telecom operators. Since then, it has been launching various CDMA enabled phones. However, with the growth of OMH, the company is hoping to launch more CDMA enabled phones in future, Lee said.

Samsung India launched the CDMA version of its popular selling model Corby SPEED here.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

Airtel moves to close deal with Warid Telecom

DHAKA: Indian telecom firm Bharti Airtel is close to acquiring a majority stake in the Bangladesh operations of Warid Telecom, with officials of both companies meeting key officials to wrap up the deal, a newspaper report said Wednesday.

The Indian company is looking at buying a 70 percent stake in Warid and has received a favourable response from the Bangladeshi firm's promoters -- the Abu Dhabi group -- who are here to thrash out the deal.

"A memorandum of understanding (MoU) could be signed between the companies during the visit," The Daily Star newspaper quoted a Warid Telecom official as saying. The MoU is the primary step before signing the final deal between the companies to share confidential business strategies.

In a related development, chairman and group chief executive officer of Bharti Enterprises Sunil Bharti Mittal called on Bangladesh telecom minister Rajiuddin Ahmed Raju at his office Tuesday.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

Bharti gets nod to invest $300m in Warid Telecom; to buy 70%

Dhaka: Bharti Airtel, India's number one cellular operator today received the nod from Bangladesh's telecom regulator to purchase 70 per cent stake in Warid Telecom and to invest 300 million dollars in the company.

"The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has approved Airtel's proposed USD 300 million investment to buy Abu Dhabi group's 70 per cent stake in the Warid Telecom, BTRC Chairman Zia Ahmed said.

 

[NSG_Blackcats]

Private sector trusts BHEL quality; accounts for 94% of PSU's orders

In what could be seen as a testimony of the quality of its work, a staggering 94 per cent of the orders received by state-run power equipment manufacturer BHEL last year came from the private sector.

The private power generation companies, which till recently patronised Chinese equipment makers, have come back to BHEL only due to its quality and performance parameters offered by the PSU.

BHEL received equipment orders worth 11,700 MW in 2009. BHEL also bagged a Rs. 2,600-crore contract from Jindal India Thermal Power Ltd. It also received a Rs. 373-crore order from Alstom Projects for supplying boiler components for the company's plant at Andhra Pradesh.

The current order-book of the company stands at Rs. 1,32,000 crore.

 

[Pintu]

Vijay Kelkar joins TCS board- Corporate Announcement-News By Company-News-The Economic Times

Vijay Kelkar joins TCS board
6 Jan 2010, 0252 hrs IST, ET Bureau

MUMBAI: IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has expanded its board with the appointment of Vijay Kelkar, former finance secretary, and Ishaat Hussain, finance director of Tata Sons. With this, the total TCS board strength has gone up to 12, of which six are independent directors.

Tata group chairman Ratan Tata is the non-executive chairman of TCS. Mr Kelkar has held several key positions in the government. He has been an advisor to the finance minister, secretary of ministry of petroleum and natural gas, and more recently the chairman of the finance commission. He has also been part of many government task forces and represented India as an executive director at the IMF.

 

[Pintu]

RIL revises Lyondell offer to $13.5 bn

RIL revises Lyondell offer to $13.5 bn
Press Trust of India / New Delhi January 8, 2010, 18:14 IST

Reliance Industries (RIL) has offered $13.5 billion to buy LyondellBasell Industries, 12.5 per cent more than its previous offer, and may sweeten it further to get control of the bankrupt petrochemicals firm.

Mukesh Ambani-led RIL had in November offered about $12 billion in cash for a controlling stake in Lyondell and a couple of weeks ago sent a letter increasing its offer to $13.5 billion, sources familiar with the development said.

RIL has offered to buy about $2.2 billion in new stock and support a separate $2.8 billion rights offering by Lyondell to take the company out of bankruptcy. Most of the remaining would be in cash, they said.

The revised offer has not found much support from the US firm and RIL may sweeten the offer further, the sources said adding the company had time till February to make another offer.

An RIL spokesperson, however, declined to comment.

The Wall Street Journal, meanwhile, reported that Lyondell's board had rejected RIL's revised offer. It saw Lyondell valuation at about $15.5 billion, $2 billion more than RIL's revised offer.

Lyondell had a year ago filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection under the US law after being unable to meet its debt obligations when global economic downturn saw demand dropping.

Lyondell, the world's third-largest independent chemical company, would give RIL petrochemical plants, two oil refineries and access to the US fuel market.

RIL had this week raised Rs 2,675 crore through treasury stock sale, possibly to fund the Lyondell buy.

Sources said RIL's bid for controlling stake would be subject to several conditions, including the approval of the US government.

In 2005, Chinese oil company CNOOC withdrew its $18.5 billion takeover bid for California energy firm Unocal Corp owing to resistance from politicians in Washington. A year later, the then Bush administration cited security concerns to reject takeover of P&O Ports by Dubai Ports.

Lyondell has large capacities and access to markets, needed for RIL's petrochem business to grow outside India.

If a deal is struck, it would create a global energy and chemicals powerhouse with nearly $80 billion in combined revenue. Lyondell is the world's third-largest chemical maker, and both companies have oil-refining operations.

Sources said RIL wants to close the deal by fiscal end. It has $4.16 billion in cash and cash equivalent instruments.

Lyondell would give RIL access to the US fuel market, the world's biggest, and make it the largest producer of polypropylene used in refrigerator castings.