Sun Network plans to enter print media
Chennai: Sun Network, the country's second largest television network, is on an expansion spree and has plans to enter the print media, launch a second Malayalam channel and expand FM radio coverage to more areas, according to Kalanithi Maran, chairman and managing director, Sun Network. Maran, however, did not disclose the time and language in which the newspaper would be published. He said that the main objective was to be present in all spheres of communication and this was the logical step towards it. This would be the next major investment of the company and would be entirely funded by internal accruals, he said.

The company had no plans to go for an initial public offering at present, Maran said. He said that Sun Network has a major share of the Southern markets. While all other southern markets had more than one channel, there was only one Malayalam channel.
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Eonour plans business recast
Chennai: Eonour Technologies plans to sell, lease or dispose of the South East Asian business and other operations of the company in India and abroad. It intends to promote a joint venture company or wholly owned subsidiary companies in India and/or Hong Kong and/or Singapore, to lease or purchase the South East Asian business and other business of the company.

This move is to bring more focus into the company's operations to capitalise on the growing business, Eonour informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. The board of directors is meeting on January 24 to discuss the matter.
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Jindal Power in talks with lenders to set up new plant
New Delhi: Jindal Power (JPL) has approached multilateral funding agency Asian Development Bank (ADB) and State Bank of India for debt-financing a 500-mw power plant, estimated to cost Rs 2,200 crore.

The company is looking for institutions for funding loans to the tune of Rs 1,500 crore for the coal-fired project. When contacted, Sushil Maroo, director JPL, confirmed that JPL had approached ADB and SBI for preliminary discussions on the matter but declined to give further details, saying it was premature to discuss the matter. Maroo, however, added that his company had mandated SBI Caps to undertake a financial appraisal exercise for the project.
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Varun Shipping may buy out hydrocarbon segment
Mumbai: Varun Shipping is on the prowl for vessel acquisitions both in India as well as through its wholly-owned subsidiary in Singapore. The company had last acquired an LPG tanker in 2002 through its rights issue proceeds.

"We are looking at trade specific acquisitions in a cautious manner, since new buildings are expensive," Yudhistir Khatau, managing director, Varun Shipping, said. As a quality conscious company, our focus is on having a modernised fleet for the hydrocarbon sector, he added. The company's subsidiary in Singapore has two offshore supply vessels, which are currently deployed in Indian waters.
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ONGC starts drive to cut costs in services
Mumbai: Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has embarked on an austerity drive. A senior company official said that ONGC has already started the process and signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with BSNL and MTNL for cellular services.

The company has asked all its employees to switch over to the services of these two cellular service providers by January 26. There are about 5,000 mobile phone users in ONGC. Senior executives in Delhi have already switched over from private cellular service providers like Airtel, Hutch and Idea to MTNL's Dolphin service on January 12.
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Bharat Forge Q3 net spurts 55%
Mumbai: Bharat Forge Ltd has recorded a 54.97-per cent increase in net profit at Rs 33.01 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2003, as compared to Rs 21.30 crore made during the same quarter last year.

The total income for the quarter has increased to Rs 212.27 crore from Rs 169.19 crore in the year-ago period. The company has approved the issue of shares with warrants on rights basis to its shareholders. The rights issue would comprise the issue of shares and the attached warrants for an amount not exceeding Rs 150 crore each.
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Ashok Leyland to spend Rs 390 crore for expansion
New Delhi: Ashok Leyland will spend Rs 390 crore to expand truck and bus-making capacity over two years.

The company expects its sales to rise by about 30 per cent in the fiscal year ending March 31, R. Seshasayee, the managing director of the company, told newspersons at a conference in New Delhi. The company may sell shares to fund the expansion plan, Seshasayee said.
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Exide Q3 PAT increases 35.48%
Kolkata: The post-tax profit of Exide Industries Ltd, the storage battery maker, increased 35.48 per cent during the third quarter ended December 31, 2003, at Rs 16.99 crore as compared to Rs 12.54 crore in the previous year. Gross sales stood at Rs 291.54 crore during the period, a rise of 8.08 per cent over the previous year, a statement issued by Exide said here.

The operating profit increased 16.21 per cent, while profit before tax increased to Rs 26.59 crore, 29.45 per cent higher than the same period last year. Commenting upon the performance, Exide chairman S B Ganguly said the company managed to sustain the overall position as market leader, besides focussing on export markets as well. The automotive battery division registered a growth of 15.36 per cent, while the industrial battery unit grew by 13.69 per cent.
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Dabur opts for evaluation method
New Delhi: Dabur India has said that it has adopted an elaborate mechanism for self-evaluation of its board members in a bid to enhance corporate governance initiatives and make its functioning more transparent. The move comes even as the board of directors of Dabur India is slated to meet on January 28, a company spokesperson said.

"We have put in place a formal, documented process for self- evaluation of the board members on an elaborate set of criteria. Thus, each of the board members will be evaluated by the remaining nine members," he said. The criteria include statutory compliance and corporate governance, role in setting up annual business plan and various processes in the company and keeping the board informed of major developments in the industry and within the company.
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Haldia Petro lenders' meet on 22 January
Kolkata: A meeting of Haldia Petrochemical Ltd's (HPL) lenders has been convened on January 22 by the CDR (Corporate Debt Restructuring) Standing Forum, paving the way for optimism regarding the conclusion of the debt restructuring process. The meeting is slated to be attended by the executive directors of HPL's battery of lenders. The process, kicked off under the Reserve Bank of India's time-bound CDR mechanism, had a zero date of October 22, 2003. It was to be completed within 60 days by December 22.

However, it missed that deadline and is currently on a month-long extension. Earlier, two of the company's key promoters — Dr Purnendu Chatterjee of Chatterjee Petrochem (Mauritius) and Dr Sabyasachi Sen, Industry Secretary to the West Bengal Government, had held a meeting with the lenders on January 5, "where the board contours of the proposed package" were agreed upon.
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