L&T
executes First US Order for
Nuclear Power Equipment
MUMBAI, Nov
14:Larsen & Toubro,
country’s leading
Engineering Company, executed the
first order of Dry Shielded
Canisters from Transnuclear Inc,
USA, an AREVA Company, for
storage of radioactive waste.
Apart
from these 12 units of canisters,
L&T is ready to despatch
additional 2 Canisters for the
next order.
These
Canisters are for USA-based
leading nuclear utilities and
have been manufactured in
accordance with the US Code of
Federal Regulations (10 CFR) and
Nuclear Safety Class 1 standards,
a statement issued by the company
said.
The
manufacture of stainless steel
canisters involves maintaining
stringent tolerance requirements.
Canisters would be supplied for
Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs).
Transnuclear Inc, USA, an AREVA
Company, has placed five repeat
orders for supply of such
canisters to leading utilities
based in USA and Switzerland (EU)
bringing the total ordered
quantity to 73 units.
This
signifies international
recognition of L&T’s
capabilities in this exclusive
area and is the first step in
participating in the potentially
large global nuclear equipment
market.
L&T
is a pioneer in manufacturing
technology, equipment manufacture
and plant services for the Indian
nuclear power plant program.
It
has also received the prestigious
‘INS Industrial Excellence
Award’ for its outstanding
contribution in the nuclear power
plant sector.
The
company has been manufacturing
critical nuclear components like
nuclear reactors, steam
generators,control rod drive
mechanisms, heat exchangers and
valves, it added. (UNI)
Sun
Pharma rises over 3 pc on good Q2
earnings
MUMBAI, Nov
14:Drug-maker Sun
Pharmaceutical Industries gained
over 3 per cent on the bourses
today after the company reported
19 per cent growth in net profit
to Rs 598 crore for the quarter
ended September 30.
Shares
of the company jumped by 3.4 per
cent to Rs 521 on the BSE, while
on the NSE, the scrip gained 3.5
per cent to Rs 522.
Sun
Pharmaceutical Industries has
reported 19 per cent growth in
net profit to Rs 598 crore for
the quarter ended September 30 on
account of robust performance
across its businesses.
In
the corresponding year-ago
period, the company had posted a
net profit of Rs 503.65 crore.
On
a standalone basis, Sun
Pharma’s net profit
increased to Rs 437.55 crore in
the second quarter ended
September 30 from Rs 345.72 crore
in the year-ago period. (PTI)
Areva
T&D bags Rs 200 cr order from
PowerGrid Corp
NEW DELHI,
Nov 14:Areva
T&D, a part of Alstom Grid,
today said it has bagged a Rs 200
crore contract from state-owned
PowerGrid Corp for setting up a
transmission network at Bareilly,
in Uttar Pradesh.
Areva
T&D India has secured
contracts worth Rs 200 crore from
PowerGrid Corp for the supply,
erection and commissioning of a
765-kV extra high voltage
sub-station, including
transformers, at Bareilly, a
company statement said.
The
765-kV transformers for this
sub-station will be delivered
from Areva T&D India’s
factory at Vadodara, in Gujarat,
which was set up in India to meet
the future needs of the country
as transmission voltage levels
move to extra or ultra-high
voltage levels (up to 1,200 kV).
All
other products for the
sub-station will be sourced from
Areva T&D India’s
manufacturing facilities at
Padappai and Pallavaram in
Chennai and Hosur (Tamil Nadu)
and NOIDA.
"This
is a critical sub-station in the
northern grid of the country and
it is a privilege for us to build
this extra high voltage
sub-station," Areva T&D
India Managing Director Rathin
Basu said.
Areva
T&D India has been awarded 16
out of 39 contracts for 765 kV
sub-stations that it bid for in
the country, it said.
In
June, 2010, the global activities
of Areva T&D were acquired by
a consortium of Alstom and
Schneider Electric.
Following
this acquisition, high voltage
transmission and power
electronics activities are being
overseen by Alstom and medium
voltage activities are under the
control of Schneider Electric.
(PTI)
Dhanlaxmi
Bank celebrates Founders’
Day
MUMBAI, Nov
14:Dhanlaxmi Bank,
country’s fastest growing
mid-size private sector bank,
today celebrated its 84 years of
glorious success, service, trust
and commitment.
The
bank incorporated in 1927 at
Thrissur, Kerala, has entered its
85th year of operations
commemorating the vision of the
founders by undertaking special
initiatives themed ‘giving
back to the society’ across
the country.
Celebrating
the eight decades of strong
existence, the bank conducted
social drives focusing on health,
environment, serving the less
fortunate and spreading general
well-being among the masses
during the Founders’ Week
from November 8 to November 14, a
release said.
Amitabh
Chaturvedi, Managing Director
& Chief Executive Officer,
Dhanlaxmi Bank, said "With
the mission to carry forward the
legacy and vision as laid down by
the founders, we aim to give back
to the society that has nurtured
us by doing small deeds of
kindness. Taking forward the
concept, Dhanlaxmi Bank will
award two-year scholarships to 10
deserving students every
year".
The
bank will be sponsoring the
students who have successfully
graduated from Thrissur
Management Association (TMA) in
Kerala by honouring each of them
with a cash prize of Rs 50,000
per annum, he added.
(UNI)
Kingfisher
shares soar 8 pc ahead of board
meet
MUMBAI, Nov
14:Shares of Kingfisher
Airlines today soared about 8 per
cent higher on the bourses, ahead
of a board meeting of the
company, being held in the midst
of a financial turbulence
engulfing the carrier.
The
stock jumped 7.88 per cent to Rs
21.20 on the BSE, while it was up
7.63 per cent up at Rs 21.15 at
the NSE in early morning trade.
It
had hit an all-time low of Rs
17.55 on Friday amid concerns
over its mounting debts and
rising operating costs.
The
airline’s board was
scheduled to meet today to take
stock of the company’s
financial position.
Kingfisher
had suffered a loss of Rs 1,027
crore in 2010-11 and is estimated
to have debt of over Rs 7,000
crore.
Its
shares are trading over 75 per
cent below its one-year peak
level of Rs 90.40, scaled on
November 10, 2010.
State
Bank of India, one of the main
lenders to the carrier, has said
that Kingfisher would have to
raise fresh equity to the tune of
Rs 800-1,000 crore, if the banks
were to consider a second
restructuring of the existing
debt or extending fresh advances.
Besides
SBI, the lenders include ICICI
Bank, IDBI Bank, Punjab National
Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of
India, UCO Bank, Oriental Bank of
Commerce and State Bank of
Mysore.
Together,
these banks now hold a 23.4 per
cent stake in the airline.
The
airline has cancelled several
flights over the past few weeks.
(PTI)
MercurioPallia
to start manufacturing new
transports in India
NEW DELHI,
Nov 14:Mercurio
Pallia Logistics Pvt Ltd plans to
invest nearly Rs 69 crore to
launch a first-of-its-kind
‘truck-on-truck’
transport concept and manufacture
specialised railway wagons for
automotive transportation.
Mercurio
Pallia Logistics is a joint
venture company between Gruppo
Mercurio SPA of Italy and Pallia
Transport of India.
Mercurio
Pallia AutoWorks Pvt Ltd, a
subsidiary of Mercurio Pallia,
which is into the business of
building bodies for automobile
carriers, plans to manufacture
the specialised trailers and
trucks at its newly established,
state-of-the-art manufacturing
facility at Rewari, Haryana.
The
company also plans to introduce
an innovative
‘truck-on-truck’
concept in India, a company
statement said.
The
trailer that would be
manufactured at the plant would
not only be used for scaling up
the company’s fleet, but
would also be exported to various
countries in the Asia-Pacific
Region.
Mercurio
Pallia is already working with
most major automobile
manufacturers in India.
Mercurio
Pallia Chairman and Managing
Director Vipul Nanda said:
"Trends have changed over
the years and now it’s more
of a volume-game, where the focus
is on doing as much work as
possible."
"The
new facility would help us
deliver a very new generation of
trailers, which can help our
customers save upon the cost of
delivery and maintenance,"
he added.
The
company also plans to manufacture
special wagons for the railways
in India to carry automotives
(especially cars), all across
India.
"Once
GST becomes applicable, we would
also look at the possibility of
using the Railways for
transportation. In fact, we have
already signed an MoU with
FreightStar," he said. (PTI)
T
Emerging
markets get $2.1 bn inflow in a
week: EPFR
NEW DELHI,
Nov 14:Emerging
markets attracted fresh capital
worth USD 2.1 billion during the
week ended November 9, given
their superior growth prospects
in the wake of debt crises in
Italy and Greece, global
fund-tracking agency EPFR has
said.
"The
turmoil surrounding Italy and
Greece did, however, highlight
the better fundamentals and
superior growth prospects of many
emerging markets, with China
front and center," EPFR said
in its weekly report.
During
the week ended November 9,
emerging market equity funds
attracted in USD 2.1 billion,
marking the fourth straight week
of inflows. However, this was
lower than USD 3.5 billion
inflows during the previous week.
The
report said that funds focussed
on Brazil and India both
experienced modest net
redemptions during the week under
review, without specifying the
weekly amounts for these funds.
The
year-to date outflows of funds
dedicated to Brazil and India
reached to USD 1.78 billion and
USD 3.67 billion respectively.
"Brazil
and India equity funds both
experienced modest net
redemptions that took
year-to-date outflows to USD 1.78
billion and USD 3.67 billion
respectively," EPFR said.
During
the same period last year, Brazil
funds had attracted USD 1.47
billion and India funds USD 685
million," it noted.
Most
of such funds invest in India as
FIIs (Foreign Institutional
Investors) and the capital flows
through this route are a key
factor in the stock market trends
here.
As
per the data available with
capital market regulator Sebi,
FIIs made a net investment of USD
208 million in Indian equities
during the week ended November 9.
EPFR
noted that equity funds dedicated
to BRIC countries (Brazil,
Russia, India and China)
collectively snapped an outflow
streak since mid-April. Besides,
flows into Asia excluding Japan
equity funds hit a 20 week high.
In
its report, EPFR said that
overall, equity funds dedicated
to global markets saw net inflows
of USD 9.59 billion during the
week ended November 9, which is
much higher than USD 4.9 billion
net inflows witnessed in the
previous week.
In
developed equity markets, the US
had inflows of USD 7.3 billion,
an eight-week high.
In
the major sectors, commodity
funds pulled in a net USD 2.16
billion and energy had inflows of
USD 873 million. (PTI)
US
carriers unhappy with American aid
to Air India
NEW YORK,
Nov 14:Calling Air
India "one of the most
poorly-run airlines in the
world", American carriers
have opposed the US Exim
Bank’s USD 3.4 billion
support to it to buy Boeing 787
Dreamliners.
The
Air Transport Association (ATA),
a trade group representing
America’s biggest carriers,
has shot off a letter to US
Export-Import Bank Chairman Fred
Hochberg opposing the decision,
saying Air India’s financial
ill-health should disqualify it
from getting American help.
The
US Exim Bank had last month
decided to give loan guarantees
of USD 1.3 billion to support Air
India’s fleet acquisition
from Boeing and another USD 2.1
billion preliminary commitment to
support future deliveries of the
US aerospace company’s
planes to the Indian national
carrier.
A
decision to this effect was taken
early October by the Board of
Directors of the Export-Import
Bank of the US.
In
its response, Exim Bank’s
general counsel said the bank
stood by its decisions and
processes, though it would
investigate some of ATA’s
assertions about its procedures,
a report in the Wall Street
Journal said.
"Air
India’s borrowing is backed
by a sovereign guarantee of the
Indian government and its
business plan has been vetted by
Exim Bank staff," the report
quoted a US government official
as saying.
The
official said support to foreign
buyers of Boeing planes was
important since if the US plane
maker could not sell airplanes to
foreign buyers like Air India,
its chief rival Europe’s
Airbus probably would.
Air
India has pending orders for 27
Boeing Dreamliners, the
deliveries of which are expected
to begin by the end of this year.
These are part of the 68-aircraft
order placed by the national
carrier with the US plane
manufacturer.
The
Exim Bank support would enable
Air India raise finances for
acquiring latest technology
aircraft at competitive interest
rates compared to commercial
financing.
ATA
opposed Exim Bank’s backing
for Boeing sales, partly because
US airlines are not eligible to
receive it as domestic purchases
are not considered exports, the
report said.
It
quoted ATA’s counsel Michael
Kelloggis as saying that the
organisation was unhappy with the
US government subsidies to
foreign buyers of Boeing
jetliners since "the
bank’s support for foreign
airlines injures US
carriers."
Kellog
said Air India is "generally
considered one of the shakiest,
riskiest and most poorly-run
airlines in the world."
The
letter, which focussed on Air
India, asked Exim Bank to slash
subsidies to all overseas buyers
of Boeing jets.
The
letter, quoted by the Journal,
states that Air India’s
"long-running financial
losses and widely reported
management problems should
disqualify it for US
support."
ATA
also criticised Exim Bank for not
being sufficiently open about its
decision making.
US
carriers believe that
"foreign airlines are
starting to flood international
routes, including routes to the
United States, with excess
capacity, subsidised by the US
government," Delta Air Lines
chief executive and ATA Chairman
Richard Anderson said in a
written statement supporting ATA.
Subsidised
competition "is crowding US
carriers out of these markets and
costing American jobs," he
said.
"The
fight boils down to a dispute
over which creates more
high-value American jobs:
airlines or Boeing and its
suppliers," the Wall Street
Journal report said.
Boeing
is America’s biggest
exporter and relies on a vast
industrial base, majority of
which is in the US. (PTI)
Inflation inched up
further to 9.73 pc in Oct
NEW DELHI,
Nov 14:Showing no
signs of moderation, the headline
inflation rose, albeit
marginally, to 9.73 per cent in
October due to expensive food
items and fuel, adding to
hardships of common man.
Inflation,
measured by the Wholesale Price
Index (WPI), was 9.72 per cent in
the previous month. The rate of
price rise had stood at 9.08 per
cent in October 2010.
Finance
Minister Pranab Mukherjee,
however, expressed the hope that
prices will calm down as a result
of good monsoon.
"I
do hope the full impact of the
good monsoon will be felt. And
steps we have taken to improve
the supply side will yield
results," he said while
attributing the high inflation to
rising prices of certain food
items.
As
per the data released today, food
items became 11.06 per cent more
expensive year-on-year during the
month under review.
Food
inflation was at 9.23 per cent in
September.
Inflation
in the fuel and power segment
stood at 14.79 per cent on an
annual basis in October, as
against 14.09 per cent in the
previous month.
The
spill-over of the over Rs 3 per
litre hike in petrol prices by
oil marketing companies in
mid-September seems to have been
reflected in the numbers.
This
is the 11th consecutive
month when headline inflation has
stood above the 9 per cent mark.
"These
trends partly reflect the impact
of depreciation of the rupee on
prices of imported inputs,"
ICRA economist Aditi Nayar said.
The
rupee has depreciated by over 10
per cent against the US dollar in
the last four months. The
exchange rate currently stands
near Rs 50 per dollar, thus
making imports more expansive,
especially of crude oil.
Inflation
in overall primary articles stood
at 11.40 per cent in October,
compared to 11.84 per cent in
September.
Prices
of manufactured products, which
have a weight of around 65 per
cent in the WPI basket, went up
by 7.66 per cent year-on-year in
October, as against 7.69 per cent
in September.
Inflation
in manufactured items has been
high since February this year,
when it crossed the 6 per
cent-mark.
Meanwhile,
the inflation numbers for August
has been maintained at the
original estimate of 9.78 per
cent. This is after a long time
that final estimates of inflation
for any month has not been
revised.
Experts
said that the Reserve Bank is
unlikely to go for another hike
in interest rates at its next
mid-quarterly review in early
December.
"Inflation
is expected to ease over the
course of the third quarter ...
Accordingly, we expect the RBI to
leave the repo rate unchanged in
the December policy review, in
line with the guidance provided
in the second quarter review of
monetary policy," Nayar
said.
In
the last review, the apex bank
has already said that another
rate hike in December is
unlikely.
The
apex bank has already hiked key
policy rates 13 times since
March, 2010, to tame inflation.
India
Inc has said the string of rate
hikes, which have raised the cost
of borrowing, have acted as a
dampener to fresh investment and
hindered growth.
Growth
in industrial production fell to
a two-year low of 1.9 per cent in
September. The economic growth in
the April-June period stood at
7.7 per cent, the slowest
expansion rate in the past six
quarters.
At
its second quarterly review last
month, RBI said it expects
inflation to start moderating by
December and fall to 7 per cent
by March, 2012.
Global
financial services major Barclays
termed the October inflation as
"in line with
expectations".
"The
November inflation is also likely
to hover around a similar level
before softening from December
onwards. Our expectation in this
regard is broadly in line with
the central bank’s
projections," Barclays
Capital economist Siddhartha
Sanyal said. (PTI)
EU hopeful FTA
negotiations will be completed by
Feb
NEW DELHI,
Nov 14: Admitting
that some issues are blocking
finalisation of the Free Trade
Agreement with India, the
European Union today voiced hope
that negotiations would be
completed by the next India-EU
Summit scheduled to be held in
February.
A
top EU official, who is leading a
high-level delegation to India,
said negotiations on the trade
agreement are on track and that
all efforts would be made to iron
out differences and conclude the
pact soon.
"We
are committed to the FTA with
India. The negotiations are
taking some time and negotiations
always take sometime, especially
trade negotiations.
"We
will try and successfully
conclude the negotiations by
February when the Summit takes
place. That is the
objective," David
O’Sullivan, Chief Operation
officer of European External
Action Service, told reporters
here.
However,
he added a rider, saying that
though concluding the FTA soon
was the objective, it depends on
the political leadership of both
sides.
He
also admitted that a few issues
were blocking the conclusion of
the agreement, negotiations on
which began in 2007 between the
two sides.
"It
is not a mystery. We need some
liberalisation by India in
automobile and a few sectors and
we are keen on imposition of some
improved tax. These are part of
the negotiations," Sullivan
said in response to a query on
the contentious issues involved
in the negotiation.
Sullivan,
who met Minister of State for
External Affairs Preneet Kaur
this morning, said his visit was
aimed at laying the ground work
for the visit of European
Commission’s Vice President
Catherine Ashton in January and
the EU-India Summit.
India
and the EU launched their
negotiations for the FTA to
increase their trade in both
goods and services and
investment. While the EU goods
exports to India in 2010 was
worth 34.7 billion euros, its
goods imports from India was to
the tune of 33.2 billion euros.
To
a specific question, Sullivan
said the EU was not suggesting
that countries come and invest in
Europe on "charity" as
these are the difficult times for
the bloc.
"We
want people or countries to make
intelligent choice. It is a
commercial choice which the
countries can make on their
own," he said.
Asked
about the EU’s stand on
India’s involvement in
Afghanistan and concerns being
raised by Pakistan, the EU
official said the European Union
was very much interested in the
stability of the region.
"We
will remain in Afghanistan even
after the militaries leave the
country and help them
economically. 2014 is not the end
but it is a new beginning in many
ways," he said.
Lauding
India’s role in rebuilding
Afghanistan, he said New Delhi
was helping the war-torn country
to become more stable and solve
problems on its own.
"We
also welcome the recent talks
between India and Pakistan in
Maldives. Positive signs are
emerging and things seem to be
going in the right direction. One
thing which people everywhere
want is stability," he said.
On
Iran, Sullivan said there have
been some "clearly
disturbing evidence" with
regard to its nuclear programme,
which have been leaked to the
media.
"We
are clear that Iran has to play
its part and convince people that
it is not doing anything malafide
with regard to nuclear
technology," he said.
Asked
whether India could play a role
in crises surrounding the Gulf
region, he left it for individual
countries to decide on their role
in such regions. (PTI)
Motorola launches new
Defy+ Android mobile
phone
NEW DELHI,
Nov 14:Mobile
handset-maker Motorola today
launched its Android-based full
touch-screen phone Motorola Defy+
for Rs 19,000.
"Motorola
Defy+ offers protection with its
water-resistant, scratch
resistant and dust proof
design," Motorola said in a
statement.
The
Defy+ has a 1-GHz processor and
is built on the Gingerbread
version of Google’s Android
operating system (Android 2.3),
it added.
"We
designed Motorola Defy+ with all
the smartphone features you need
for a demanding lifestyle. With
faster web-browsing, social
networking tools and great
entertainment capabilities, it
puts friends and fun in easy
reach," Motorola
Mobility’s Country Head -
Sales and Operations for Mobile
Devices Business Rajan Chawla
said.
The
company said the Motorola Defy+
has a 3.7-inch touch-screen
display and 5-megapixel camera.
It has an Adobe Flash 10-enabled
browser that allows users to
watch movies or view videos on
the web browser of the phone.
Based
on Android platform, the phone
supports Gtalk, which allows
people to chat on the phone with
help of their mobile internet
connection.
The
Motorola Defy+ supports 7.1 hours
of talk time and has a 16-day
standby battery life. The best
price at which the phone will be
sold in the market is Rs 17,990,
the statement said. (PTI)
DoT
seeks Law Min views on 3G roaming
agreement
NEW DELHI,
Nov 14: Department
of Telecom has sought views of
the Law Ministry whether the
mobile operators who bought 3G
spectrum in government auction
are circumventing their licensing
conditions by leasing out the
advance radio waves among
themselves.
"Legal
Advisor (Telecom) may also offer
his views on the legal
appropriation on the case (3G
roaming agreement)," a
senior Department of Telecom
(DoT) official said in an
internal note.
Major
service providers including
Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar and
Idea Cellular have entered into
3G roaming alliances in their bid
to offer high-end data services
on a pan-India basis.
In
a similar deal with Tata
Teleservices, Aircel offers 3G
services in six circles.
However,
their moves did not go well with
the DoT which feels that these
inter-operator alliances violate
terms and conditions of the third
generation (3G) spectrum
agreements which were singed in
June last year following high-bid
auctions.
The
DoT took up the issue after
regulator Trai had prima-facie
come to conclusion that such
agreements are in violation of
the terms and conditions of the
telecom licences.
Earlier,
DoT’s Wireless Planning and
Coordination (WPC) Wing, which
keeps an eye on industry players
had also said that the 3G
inter-operator arrangements
between the Licensee should not
be treated as roaming
arrangement. It should be treated
as sharing of spectrum which is
not permitted under the
agreements signed with the DoT,
the note added.
The
WPC, a DoT wing, had also warned
that the move by the service
providers would result in revenue
loss to the exchequer.
Defending
the 3G roaming agreements between
telecom operators, the GSM lobby
Cellular Operators Association of
India had said they did not
violate the Unified Access
Services Licence (UASL) under
which service providers can offer
all services. (PTI)
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