|
Project Update
International
Numaligarh refinery foraying into Bangladesh market
The Central government having permitted Numaligarh Refinery
Ltd to open 510 petrol and diesel retail outlets, the company
has prepared a roadmap to roll out outlets in different parts
of the country in phases. By the end of 2007-08, a total of
73 retail outlets - 42 in the Northeast and 31 in other parts
of the country - will be commissioned. NRL is planning to
nearly triple its market share in the northeast from 11 per
cent to reach 30 per cent by 2010. As per MoU signed between
NRL's parent Bharat Petroleum and Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation,
10,000 tonne diesel will be exported from the refinery during
June-December 2007. The 3 million tonne per year, landlocked
refinery is in the process of setting up a Rs 83 crore marketing
terminal at Siliguri to improve evacuation process.
Contact: Numaligarh Refinery Ltd.
Tel: 0361-220 3133. Fax: 0361-220 3146.
Website: www.nrl.co.in
BEML in mining JV
BEML Midwest Ltd is targeting development of opencast mines
in the range of 10 million tonne and will explore opportunities
both in India and abroad. The equity base of the new company
is fixed at Rs 100 crore, with 45 per cent being picked up
by defence PSU BEML. Hyderabad-based Midwest Granite Pvt Ltd,
along with Sumber Mitra Jaya of Indonesia will together hold
55 per cent.
The JV is expected to generate Rs 500 crore from contract
mining in the next 4-5 years. The company is looking for allocation
of coal blocks and coal supply tie-ups with power plants.
In the overseas market, the JV will look for coal blocks in
Indonesia, Australia and South Africa. The JV will additionally
ensure orders for BEML's equipment and spares, where it does
not have to undergo tedious tender processes.
Contact: BEML. Tel: 080-2222 4141, 2296 3240. Fax: 080-2296
3444, 2296 3278, 2296 3279.
E-mail: office@cmd.beml.co.in
Website: www.bemlindia.com
National
Steel Minister talks tough to SAIL on project delays
SAIL has been asked to invest Rs 6,000 crore more in expansion
- from Rs 37,000 crore envisaged earlier to Rs 43,000 crore
by 2010 - and reach a capacity of 25 million tonne per year
rather than 22.5 mtpy. Current installed capacity of the multi-location
public sector steel player is 13 mtpy. Steel Minister Ram
Vilas Paswan reviewed progress of SAIL's expansion programme
and urged the top management to stick to schedules of implementation.
The government is keen to avoid the usual delays that used
to mark PSU programmes all along. The management has been
promised true autonomy in decision making and procedural snags
will be addressed appropriately.
Contact: SAIL. Tel: 011-2436 7481-86.
Fax: 011-2436 7015. E-mail: sailco@vsnl.com Website: www.sail.co.in
Spectacular turnaround of Sterling Holiday Resorts
Sterling Holiday Resorts has drawn up expansion projects that
will see an investment to the tune of Rs 400 crore in a two-year
time frame. The expansion will be funded partially through
timeshares worth Rs 200 crore and term loans. Sterling Holiday
Resorts has been seeing bad times since 1996 and could not
maintain resort property well and defaulted in debt repayment
to banks as it suffered monthly losses in the range of Rs
3-4 crore. The company has repaid all but Rs 30 crore by now
and will be clearing the entire default by October 2007. Having
achieved that, the company has resolved to earn back its old
position in the hospitality industry by 2009.
Contact: Sterling Holiday Resorts.
Website: www.sterlingresorts.in
Chowgule Group in talks with Kobe Steel
Chowgule Group is likely to provide a toehold to Japanese
steelmaker Kobe Steel to exploit the Indian market commercially
by launching its new low-cost steel plant technology. Kobe's
iron making technology involves conversion of low-grade iron
ore fines into iron nuggets of the same quality as pig iron.
The collaboration is likely to be by way of a 0.5 million
tonne per year plant in India using the process. It would
be a JV, either with Kobe providing only the technology or
chipping in with an investment of up to $ 165 million. Chowgule
currently mines 4.5 mta iron ore, out of which 3.5 mta is
exported. The Group processes a small quantity in its 1.8
mta pellettisation plant at Mandovi, for further processing
in a blast furnace.
Contact: Chowgule Group.
Tel: 0832-252 1010, 252 1034. Fax: 0832-252 1011.
E-mail: ccl@chowgule.co.in
Website: www.chowgule.co.in
Vibha Agrotech plans expansion of Rs 126 crore
An investment of Rs 125 crore aimed at expanding product portfolio
and production volumes of hybrid seed varieties has been lined
up by Hyderabad-based Vibha Agrotech Limited. It will be setting
up new processing plants and R&D facilities in Andhra
Pradesh besides a facility in Gujarat.
Meanwhile, the company has sealed a pact with Australian Centre
for Plant Functional Genomics to work jointly on research
projects aimed at developing abiotic stress resistance varieties
of cereals.
Contact: Vibha Agrotech Ltd.
Tel: 040-330 1473. E-mail: vsagar@hd2.dot.net.in
Website: www.vibhaseeds.com
Cabana group to invest $ 1.2 bn
The Cabana Group has lined up an investment of $ 1.2 billion
to set up luxury hotels at Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Ooty, Rameswaram,
Kanyakumari and Jaisalmer over a two-year span. The company
has been appointed as the master licencee in India of Best
Western International of the US, which apart from the flagship
property Best Western Premier Holiday Regency at Moradabad
in Uttar Pradesh, manages properties in Gurgaon, Mumbai, Pune
and Hyderabad. Cabana will adopt a three - pronged strategy
for growth. It will develop existing franchisees of Best Western
in India; it will look for properties to bring under the Best
Western brand and provide managerial support and it will build
its own hotels. Although Cabana is a Mumbai-based company,
its promoters are based in the US.
Contact: The Cabana Group.
Tel: 22-2498 5506. Fax: 22-2498 5505.
E-mail: info@thecabanahotels.com
Website: www.thecabanahotels.com
Andhra Pradesh
Gorlas Group gets going in oil and gas sector
Hyderabad-based Gorlas Group has marked up its interest in
the oil and gas exploration and production sector, diverting
significantly from its interest in urban infrastructure. The
closely - held company started its petroleum foray in 2004
with the acquisition of Heramec Ltd from Hardy Oil of UK for
an undisclosed sum, to get rights on its six developmental
fields in Cambay. It has forged JV partnerships with Indian
and global players to tap the premium energy resource. A group
company Alkor Petro Ltd has been successful in its bid for
operational blocks in Cambay basin apart from Yemen and Egypt.
It has sewed up JVs with ONGC, GSPC, Jubilant Oil & Gas
and HOEC for Indian operations.
Contact: ONGC. Tel: 022-2642 9901.
Website: www.ongcindia.com
Bramhani Industries Limited to set up Kadappa steel plant
The Andhra Pradesh government has identified the land and
allotted 2 tmc water in Kadappa district for an integrated
steel plant proposed by Bramhani Industries Limited. An MoU
has been signed by the government and the company promoted
by Obulapuram Mining Company. While the allotted water will
be enough for a capacity of 4 mtpy, the government is currently
exploring various options for securing the remaining 3 tmc
water required to reach 10 mtpa capacity.
Contact: The Andhra Pradesh government. Website: www.aponline.gov.in
Grundfos Pumps' SEZ revives Rajkot SSI engineering units'
fortune
Gujarat is the frontline choice for an SEZ, which is on the
radar of Grundfos Pumps India, the Indian arm of Danish transnational
Grundfos Group. The Group produces 10 million pumps of various
types per year and has a 50 per cent global market share of
circulator pumps. Behind the choice is the emergence of modern
and efficient port facilities in Gujarat as well as the potential
of a cluster of small scale engineering units in Rajkot specialising
in mass manufactured components to feed the facility. The
company is in negotiations with a few manufacturers in Rajkot
and looks at the cluster as a strong alternative to imports
from China. While it finds the pricing much nearer to Chinese
manufacturers.
Contact: Grundfos Pumps.
Tel: 044-2496 6800.
Gujarat
Granolite ACPs from Decolite to hit market in 2008
An aluminium composite panels facility is being set up by
Decolight Ceramics, the leading ceramic tiles producer based
at Morbi in Gujarat. It will market the ACPs under its Granolite
brand. The plant with an initial capacity of 5,000 sq mt per
day will cost Rs 4 crore to set up. The ACPs, priced in the
Rs 50 - 55 per sq mt range will be available from the beginning
of 2008. Decolight has a market share of 10 per cent in the
vitrified ceramic tiles market after doubling capacity to
12,000 sq mt per day from 6,000.
Contact: Decolite.
Tel: 02822-241 988/241 156. Fax: 02822-241 225.
Jharkhand
HEC hopeful cranes for Orissa will revive fortunes
Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited of Orissa has placed a Rs 185
crore order with Heavy Engineering Corporation Ltd, the PSU
based at Ranchi. The order is for the supply of 18 cranes
to be installed as part of NIN's phase-II modernisation programme.
This order takes the order book position of the sick heavy
engineering behemoth to Rs 700 crore. A financial package
in the pipeline from the Jharkhand Government will hopefully
enable it raise funds to execute the orders. The BIFR basket
case recorded an operating profit of Rs 18.08 crore on a topline
of Rs 334.42 crore in 2006-07.
Contact: HEC Ltd. Tel: 0651-240 1249. Fax: 0651-240 1571.
E-Mail: rch_hecmktg@sancharnet.in Website: www.hecltd.com
Karnataka
Karnataka examining Tata Motors' demand for sops
The Karnataka govt has approved a proposal by Tata Motors
to set up a plant to manufacture luxury and mini buses, light
commercial vehicles and accessories at Dharwad. The Rs 2,700
crore project is likely to commence production during 2008-09
and will produce 226,000 vehicles annually. It will come up
on 300 acre adjacent to the company's earth-moving equipment
manufacturing unit. The government has also formed a committee
to consider the demand of Tata Motors for concessions at par
with those granted to the upcoming Toyota Motors facility
in the state.
Contact: Tata Motors. Tel: 022-6665 8282.
Website: www.tatamotors.com
Orissa
SAIL board approval for
Rourkela modernisation
Production capacity of Rourkela Steel Plant of SAIL is set
to double, with hot metal capacity going up from 2 million
tonne per annum to 4.5 mtpa, by 2010. The Rs 9,870 crore modernisation-cum-expansion
programme approved by the SAIL board involves setting up of
a new blast furnace; it will have 4,060 cubic metre working
volume at a productivity of 2.3 tonne per cubic metre on a
daily basis. The blast furnace-I of RSP will also be renovated
and updated to 1,250 cubic metre useful volume with high top
pressure and coal dust injection facilities. Also, coal dust
injection system will be incorporated in blast furnace-IV
as part of modernisation to improve quality and productivity.
Contact: SAIL. Tel: 011-2436 7481-86.
Fax: 011-2436 7015. E-mail: sailco@vsnl.com Website: www.sail.co.in
Puri Municipality project for Srei
Puri Municipality has awarded two consultancy projects of
preparing detailed project reports to Srei Capital Markets
Ltd, which has been empanelled by the National Urban Renewal
Mission to prepare town plans. Srei will prepare DPRs for
the Rs 10 crore street lighting project and the Rs two crore
swargadwar development project for Puri according to MoUs
signed with the municipality. Apart from more work from the
Puri urban body, Srei is looking at development planning work
from 63 cities covered by NURM.
Contact: Srei. Tel: 033-2285 0112-0115/0124-0127. Fax: 033-2285
7542/8501.
E-mail: corporate@srei Website: www.srei.com
Rs 500 crore contracts bonanza for HCC
Civil work for phase-I of Tata's 6 million tonne per year
steel plant at Kalinganagar in Orissa has been awarded to
Hindustan Construction Company. Work is to begin in Dec 2007
and will be completed in Dec 2009. This Rs 168 cr contract
may be a curtain-raiser for structural work contracts in the
next phase. HCC is pursuing contracts for Tata's upcoming
greenfield plants in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh and expansion
at Jamshedpur.
Contact: Hindustan Construction Company Ltd.
Tel: 022-2577 5959. Fax: 022-2578 1850.
Punjab
Ludhiana Apollo hospital bags JCI accreditation
Ludhiana will have a 200-bed cancer hospital at an initial
investment of Rs 25 crore by December 2008. Apollo group hospital
SPS Apollo will also be setting up a nursing college alongside
in Ludhiana at a cost of Rs 5 crore. The group currently runs
a 350-bed multi-specialty tertiary care hospital in the city.
This hospital has become the first in South East Asia to achieve
accreditation from Joint Commission International of US in
the category within just two years of starting operations.
Leveraging the recognition, SPS Apollo will be opening marketing
offices in the US, Canada and UK to attract non-resident patients
and to take up other medical tourism projects.
Contact: Apollo Group.
Website: www.apollohospitals.com
Rajasthan
Banswara Syntex banks on facility expansion for jump in margins
The Rs 227 crore expansion programme of Banswara Syntex Ltd
is on track, with the installation of 16,000 spindles for
polyester viscose and also 16 shuttleless looms in the financial
year 2006-07. Installation of a garment facility at the Surat
SEZ is also on track including the setting up of a 18-MW thermal
power plant.
Contact: Banswara Syntex.
Tel: 02962-242 301-306, Fax: 02962-240 692.
E-mail: software@banswarafabrics.com
Website: www.banswarasyntex.com
Tamil Nadu
Arasur complex set to triple garment output
Tirupur-based KPR Mill Ltd has passed a milestone in its Rs
472 crore capacity building programme and its 1.4 million
sq ft integrated knitted garment complex is set to go fully
functional. The expansion includes setting up of 100,000 spindle
spinning complex and a 1,440-seat garment unit with a capacity
of a 100,000 pieces per day on 44-acre near Coimbatore. The
programme aims at doubling yarn production from 75 tonne per
day to 150 tpd and tripling garment output from 12 million
pieces per year to 37.9 million by March 2008. The company
will also be adding 12 windmills of 1 MW capacity each to
its battery of 29. Power from windmills cost just Rs 0.53
per unit for the company instead of Rs 3.50 prevailing in
Tamil Nadu.
Contact: KPR Mill Ltd. Tel: 247 9835-40.
Fax: 247 0159. Website: www.tea-india.org
Uttar Pradesh
Superhouse scaling up production of footwear
Superhouse Ltd is scaling up footwear manufacturing capacity
from 10,000 pairs per day to 15,000 ppd by setting up additional
facilities in Agra and Kanpur.
The leather products company will also set up a tannery in
Unnao to process 100,000 sq ft leather per month to feed the
footwear plants. An investment of Rs 50 crore has been lined
up during the span of a year.
Contact: Superhouse Ltd. Tel: 0515-202 9452, 282 9923, 282
9657, 282 9037. Fax: 0515-292 9325, 282 9190. Website: www.superhousegroup.com
Uttarakhand
Kent RO to ramp up water purifier output by 100,000
Kent RO Water Purifiers is ramping up manufacturing capacity,
from 60,000 currently, with the opening of a new facility.
The new plant in Uttarakhand has an installed capacity of
100,000 units. The company has launched its advanced 3-stage
UV water purifier with Nano Silver in the market. Kent tripled
its volumes in 2006-07 and is all set to further boost it
by 80 per cent in 2007-08. The company has notched up a 15
per cent market share, with a network of 80 dealers in Punjab
and Haryana. It now plans to take the brand national and is
looking at the overseas markets too.
Kent RO has spent Rs 10 cr so far on brand building and has
budgetted
Rs 12 crore more for the purpose.
The new Uttarakhand facility will enable the company to keep
pace with the growing demand in the Indian and overseas markets.
Contact: Kent RO.
Tel: 0120-305 2059 (8 lines). Fax: 0120-242 3654.
E-mail: sales@kent.co.in Website: www.kent.co.in
West Bengal
Rs 1,500 crore for Kolkata gutter cleansing
Desilting and structural rehabilitation of drainage and sewerage
system in Kolkata is being taken as a capital-intensive project
by the Municipal Corporation. KMC banks on financial assistance
from Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission and the
state government for the work. It plans to immediately invest
Rs 500 crore to avoid breakdown of the system due to clogging
and another Rs 1,000 crore is in the pipeline.
According to JNNURM, the Central government will invest 35
per cent of the total project cost, while the remaining 65
per cent is to be shared between KMC and the state government
jointly.
Contact: KMC. Tel: 2286 1009/10.
KoPT ties up with ABG to set up 20-acre CFS
The Kolkata Port Trust, as part of its plans to encourage
private participation in development of port services to keep
pace with increasing volumes, has tied up with Mumbai-based
ABG Heavy Industries Ltd. ABG will build a container freight
station at Dhulagarh to help in stuffing/destuffing of containers
from Netaji Subhas Dock of Kolkata port. The facility will
remove congestion in the port and increase container traffic.
It will have a state-of-the-art warehousing complex spread
over 20 acre and will see an investment of Rs 100 crore in
phases. The company has plans to set up CFSs at New Mangalore,
Paradeep and Goa ports and has also earmarked an investment
of Rs 200 crore to enhance its crane hiring facilities.
Contact: The Kolkata Port Trust.
Tel: 033-2230 3451(25 Lines). Fax: 033-2230 4901.
Website: www.kolkataporttrust.gov.in
Snapshots
DS Constructions concludes $ 542 million acquisition of Globeleq's
America package in JV with Israel Corporation.
Zicom Electronic Security Systems Ltd in strategic tie-up
with Future Media to retail its products in Future Group's
select retails formats.
First Alstom GT26-based combined cycle 370 MW plant for Gujarat
State Electricity Corporation Ltd at Rs 1,000 crore.
Mumbai's only Gems & Jewellery SEZ to be set up by Royal
Palms Estates at an investment of Rs 400 crore.
Simplex Infrastructures bags orders worth Rs 1,006 crore from
overseas market; current order book Rs 7,000 crore.
International Tractors Ltd to invest Rs 450 crore for a new
tractor manufacturing facility in South India and dealership
network of 200.
Feedback Ventures appointed PPP adviser to Delhi Metro.
Hero Motors Ltd to supply auto components to domestic and
overseas carmakers; expecting Rs 600-700 crore revenue.
General Motor's Pune plant to be commissioned next year; initial
installed capacity 1.40 lakh cars per annum.
Hyderabad-based Cynosure Enterprises to launch a manufacturing
facility for batteries.
L&T bags Rs 114 crore order from SAIL for gas insulated
substation, transmission network for Bhilai Steel Plant.
Private equity investment of Rs 250 crore from Indiareit for
Paranjape Schemes Construction Ltd's Flagship Infrastructure
Pvt Ltd.
Steel and Industrial Forgings Ltd to expand capacity to accommodate
a few new products.
Maytas Ventures proposes to establish a mega township in Kakinada
and has sought to acquire land near the town.
Man Tarmat Ltd will invest Rs 20 crore for diversifying into
bridges and flyovers.
Kochi to be developed as an exclusive cruise terminal of global
service standards to attract more sea-borne tourists to Kerala.
Maharashtra government proposes five exclusive zones to which
saw mills will be restricted.
Piaggio plans Rs 353 crore diesel engine facility in Pune.
Tamil Nadu Cabinet clear Tata Steel's Rs 2,500 crore titanium
dioxide project.
Shasun Chemicals and Drugs Ltd to add capability in its upcoming
greenfield project at Visakhapatnam; to spend Rs 200 crore.
Marcegaglia, the 3.4 billion Italian cold steel re-roller
and tube maker, to make a major investment in India.
SPC Biotech has lined up a group of NRIs to fund a $ 100 million
plant.
Shemaroo Entertainment to invest Rs 150 crore in its film
production and distribution businesses over the next two years.
SN Ladhani, better known as the angel investor of Air Deccan,
lines up several initiatives in the hospitality sector. Outlay:
Rs 1,000 cr.
Mishra Dhatu Nigam Ltd, Midhani to increase its melting capacity
from five to 15 tonne in the next 12 months.
City Square Enterprises is offering space at an introductory
price of Rs 599 per sq ft at a103 acre realty project near
Chennai.
Neyveli Lignite Corporation's coal-bed methane exploration
project cleared by Tamil Nadu govt.
Kandla Port Trust receives EOI from four infrastructure and
construction companies for developing three proposed projects.
Alexandria to execute phase-II and phase-III of Helix, the
106 acre biotechnology park in Bangalore.
Mobile Telecommuni-cations Limited will invest Rs 25 crore
in a battery manufacturing facility; acquires 10 acre in Hyderabad.
Lanco is following up its property development initiative
at Hyderabad with a mega development at Chennai.
US-based SPC Green Plastics Inc to set up an integrated biopolymer
unit based on corn.
Future Energy Zone India Ltd receives Tamil Nadu govt go ahead
for SEZ dedicated to renewable energy.
ONGC to investment Rs 1,285 crore to develop fields on the
northwest of Bombay High.
Vishal Retail to set up 32 stores in 2007 - 08 using Rs 110
crore from IPO.
SAIL to augment iron ore production in Orissa; will invest
Rs 1,100 crore.
| 
