MTNL to seek ILD licence
Mumbai: Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) has decided to apply for an international long distance telephony (ILD) licence.

MTNL will not be able to cater to its international traffic directly and will have to route its customers through the VSNL network for the next two years. As per the government decision, MTNL will continue to route all international calls through the VSNL network up to 2004.

In order to enhance VSNL value prior to the divestment, the cabinet committee on disinvestment had decided that MTNL would give the most preferred customer status to VSNL till 31 March 2004.
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Reliance hikes polymer prices
Mumbai: Reliance Industries Ltd has increased polymer prices by Rs 2 per kg effective 18 March.

Polyethylene costs Rs 41 per kg as against Rs 39 on 1 March. Polypropylene is at Rs 41.25 per kg (Rs 39.25) while polyvinyl chloride is at Rs 38.05 per kg (Rs 36.05). Among polyester products, polyester staple fibre prices are up by Re 1 to Rs 44.25 per kg. Partially oriented yarn and polyethylene terephthalate prices remain at Rs 53.55 per kg and Rs 53 per kg respectively.

Purified terephthalic acid, monoethylene glycol and linear alkyl benzene prices remain at Rs 24.60 per kg, Rs 23.75 per kg and Rs 51.40 per kg.
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MBT in pact with VeriSign for e-security
Mumbai: Mahindra British Telecom (MBT), the 57:43 joint venture between Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) and British Telecom, plans an alliance with US-based VeriSign Inc for developing and providing e-security solutions.

As part of the initiative, MBT would be building a laboratory in Mumbai to test VeriSign's components. The company would also be working with VeriSign's customers for different implementation services.

The alliance with VeriSign would provide MBT multiple benefits other than the upfront revenue from the development work done for them. The alliance would also provide MBT access to the entire customer base, which would give it the leverage to expand on several other business opportunities.
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IFCI plans SPV for asset securitisation
New Delhi: IFCI Ltd is planning to set up a special purpose vehicle for securitisation of assets.

The financial institution has already generated around Rs 800 crore through the securitisation route in the current financial year.

A pool of assets would be transferred to the SPV which would be then securitised with other banks and financial institutions. Another option is to transfer the receivables - interest and principal - into an escrow account.
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Taiwanese cos to set up colour tube unit in Rajasthan
New Delhi: Three Taiwan-based companies have plans to set up a Rs 876-crore colour display tube manufacturing facility at Sirohi in Rajasthan.

The proposed colour display tubes manufacturing plant will have an annual installed capacity of 20 lakh pieces.

Bridge Information Company Ltd, Access Technology Company Ltd and Winny Electron Enterprise Company Ltd and Associates will invest Rs 356.6 crore for 100-per cent equity participation in the Rs 876-crore project.

The Indian company will be set up by AVN Winfotech Ltd with 100 per cent foreign equity participation, for which it has applied to the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) for permission.
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GM to finalise Daewoo deal soon
New Delhi: General Motors Corp hopes to finalise the takeover of Daewoo Motor of South Korea shortly.

The final contract, which included Daewoo Motor India, is expected be inked in a few weeks.

GM officials started their first face- to-face talks with Daewoos union on 18 March and the meeting had ended with labour officials reiterating demands for job security and reinstatement of more than 1,000 workers laid off last year.

GM has agreed to pay $400 million in cash for assets including two Daewoo plants in Korea and one each in Egypt and Vietnam. The contents of the agreement were later altered to include Daewoo India in the list instead of the Egyptian unit.
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Lawrence & Mayo plans new products
Mumbai: Lawrence & Mayo Opticals is planning to introduce a premium line of frames and sunglasses in its own brand name. The company, which already has an economy brand, has decided to bring in exclusive glasses and frames under the name L&M 125 series.

The company is planning to outsource a limited number of editions for its premium brand from a manufacturing unit in Italy and offer it in India at an affordable price range of Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000.
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Govt to divest over 26% stake in BPCL, HPCL
Mumbai: The government will disinvest over 26 per cent of its stake each in Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd in 2002-03, according to union disinvestment secretary Pradip Baijal.

Defending the sale of IBP Ltd to Indian Oil Corporation, he said the state-owned oil company had emerged as the highest bidder and IBP being a marketing company was already distributing IOC's petro products through its outlets.

In the case of BPCL and HPCL, each one was balanced in terms of their marketing and refining capacities, he said.
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Film completion guarantee co formed
Mumbai: The Los Angeles-based Film Finances and the Bobby Bedi-promoted Kaleidoscope Films have formed the first film completion guarantee company called Film Completion Services.

Well-known film-maker Yash Chopra is also likely to pick up a stake in the new venture. IDBI and some commercial banks in India, who are entering film finance, are beginning to insist on a completion cover.

The Indian joint venture will seek to provide a completion guarantee cover to around three to five Indian films a year initially. These will be mostly in the mid-budget category.
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SAB to launch Castle Lager in Mumbai
Mumbai: Castle Lager from South African Breweries will be launched in Mumbai soon at Rs 40 a bottle.

SAB plans to launch Castle lager in two sizes, a 750 ml bottle at Rs 40 and a 330 ml bottle at Rs 21. The beer will be made at the companys brewery at Aurangabad.

The beer will be competing with King Fisher and Fosters. KingFisher has 26 per cent market share in a 72 million cases industry.

Castle lager has already been launched in Delhi.
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Shaw Wallace to set up brewery unit
New Delhi: Shaw Wallace is setting up a new joint venture brewery project and has also entered into a capacity leasing contract.

The company has signed an agreement with Jammu-based New India Breweries to set up a 1.2-million case brewery near Jammu by March 2003 at an investment of Rs 20 crore.

Shaw Wallace would have a 51 per cent stake in the joint venture while the remaining 49 per cent stake would be held by the New India group headed by Sneh Gupta.

The company has also forged an exclusive lease arrangement with Winsome Breweries (Rajasthan) to use the two million case annual capacity of the brewery to exclusively bottle its brands for the North India markets.
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E Merck announces VRS
Mumbai: E Merck India has announced a voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) for its workers at the Taloja plant in Maharashtra.

The plant makes tablets of Polybion, Neurobion and nasal drops and has about 400 employees.

The VRS is for employees who have completed a minimum service of ten years with the company or are 40 years of age.

This scheme should cost the company approximately Rs 8.5 lakh per employee.
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Net4India to invest Rs 250cr
Mumbai: Net4India has applied for a licence to offer international long distance services with an investment of Rs 250 crore over a period of 18 months.

Currently, Net4India is in dialogue with prospective international telecom carriers as strategic partners for call origination and termination.

The company is in a position to begin its services within eight weeks after getting the licence.
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Aventis logs Rs 67 cr profit
Mumbai: Aventis Pharma has posted a net profit, post tax and exceptional items, of Rs 66.6 crore for the year ended 31 December 2001. Net sales stood at Rs 589.2 crore.

The figures for 2001 are for 12 months, while the previous years published figures are for 9 months.

Further the figures given also include transactions of Rhone Poulenc Rorer for 1 April 2001 to 31 December 2001.

The positive trend has been fuelled by strong growth of strategic brands led by Cardace (70 per cent ), Allegra (45 per cent ), Amaryl (56 per cent ) and Tavanic (55 per cent ).
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Ranbaxy gets USFDA nod for Midazolam Syrup
New Delhi: Ranbaxy Pharmaceutical has received final approval from US Food and Drug Administration to market Midazolam Hydrochloride syrup.

The product will be launched before 15 May this year.

Midazolam Syrup is indicated for use in paediatric patients for sedations, anxiolysis and amnesia under a monitored environment.
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Aurobindo Pharma revamps board
Hyderabad: Aurobindo Pharma has recast its board. Three of its whole-time directors - Srinivas Lanka, A J Kamath and A Siva Rama Prasad - have stepped down from their positions. The company is appointing three independent external directors on the board. It may also consider the reappointment of Srinivas Lanka as non-executive independent director.

The Rs 1,000 crore bulk drug major has taken up a major revamping and modernisation exercise at its production facilities.

The company has recently finalised the private placement of equity shares to promoters and Templeton Emerging Markets at Rs 226 a share to enable it to complete the balance works by June 2002.
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Indica leads in B-segment car sales
New Delhi: Tata Engineerings Indica and Hyundai Motors Santro are brushing shoulders in their race for the top slot in the popular B-segment, once ruled by Maruti Zen.

Indica sold 13,889 units during the period as compared with 13,820 units of Hyundais Santro.

Marutis Zen came third with 11,099 units. Sales of all other models in this segment are around the 5,000 mark.

These include the recently launched Fiat Palio (5,435 units), Marutis WagonR (4,816 units) and the Alto (4,775 units).

Maruti sold the largest number of cars with 20,690 units out of a combined sales of 53,834 units in January and February.
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Hetero Drugs introduces anti-ulcerant
Hyderabad: Hetero Drugs Ltd has introduced Rabeprazole, the latest anti-ulcerant drug, under a co-marketing arrangement with Lupin and German Remedies.

As per the arrangement, Hetero produces the drug for Lupin, German Remedies and itself, but markets it under three different brand names.

While Hetero launched the drug under the brand name Rabez, Lupin and German Remedies named it Rabilet and Happi, respectively.

Rabeprazole, claimed to be a highly effective proton pump inhibitor with less side effects, is patented by Takeda, Japan.
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NextLinx plans $10 m investment in India
Bangalore: NextLinx Corporation, the global trade management solutions provider, is planning to invest $10 million in the next 18 months in expanding the operations of its Indian subsidiary NextLinx India.

The company expects to move its entire content development operations and a major part of its product development team to India in the next one-and-a-half years.

NextLinx is also planning to set up a business development centre in Bangalore, which would initially look after the South Asian region, especially Singapore and Hong Kong. Subsequently, the business development centre would also cater to the European markets.
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