Torrent Power's Surat project achieves financial closure
Ahmedabad: Torrent Power Generation Ltd has achieved financial closure for its proposed 1,095-MW plant at Surat with an Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC)-led consortium agreeing to provide Rs2,167 crore for the project.

The total cost of the gas-based combined cycle power plant has been estimated at Rs3,096 crore.

While the Ahmedabad-based Torrent group will chip in with about Rs557 crore as 60 per cent of the Rs929-crore equity, the rest will be offered to the project's EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) contractors and other suppliers.

The Torrent group has already invested Rs264 crore in Torrent Group Power Generation (TGPL), the special purpose vehicle for the power project.

The plant is expected to commence production by 2007. The consortium of lenders comprises six financial institutions.

The contributions are IDFC Rs400 crore, Power Finance Corporation (Rs600 crore), IDBI, UCO Bank and Canara Bank (Rs300 crore each) and Punjab National Bank (Rs267 crore).
Power generated from the project will be supplied to Ahmedabad Electricity Company and Surat Electricity Company, the group's distribution entities in Ahmedabad and Surat.

The project envisages use of advanced class gas turbines with high thermal efficiency in three blocks of 365 MW each.

The Surat plant will benefit from the proximity of major pipelines and the Hazira liquefied natural gas terminal, which will provide fuel for the power plant, the executives said.
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Siemens bags communications systems order from Delhi Metro
New Delhi: Siemens AG's Transportation Systems (TS) has been awarded a Euro 49 million order by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to equip its new metro line with signalling and communications systems.

This order, to be executed by Siemens AG and Siemens Ltd in partnership, marks the group's first breakthrough into India's mass transit (metro) market, a release said.

Siemens will equip DMRC's new 23.5-km Line 3 with an automatic train control system that includes signalling and telecommunication systems. The ATC will enable trains to operate at 2-minute headways and at a maximum speed of 80 km/h.
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Oil Country Tubular's equity offer to IDBI
Hyderabad: Oil Country Tubular Ltd has informed the stock exchanges that its shareholders at the annual general meeting have authorised the board of directors to offer, issue and allot up to 50-lakh equity shares of Rs10 each to Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) in accordance with loan agreement entered with the bank.

The company has further informed that it has received a Letters of Intent from ONGC valued at $26.66 million (around Rs122.3 crore) on September 17 for castings to be supplied during 2004-05 and 2005-06. With these, the order book position as on date improved to Rs205 crore.
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Cricket: SC to hear Zee's plea on Monday
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will hear a writ petition filed by Zee Telefilms challenging the cancellation of the telecast rights awarded to it by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) between 2004 and 2008 and re-opening of the tender process on Monday.

A three-Judge Bench, comprising the Chief Justice, R.C. Lahoti, Justice G.P. Mathur and Justice P.P. Naolekar, fixed the date after senior counsel Harish Salve, who pleaded for early hearing, mentioned the petition. Since the BCCI has filed a caveat, the court will also hear its version before passing any order.

Zee has alleged that there was prior collusion between BCCI and sports channel ESPN-Star Sports, which led to the board's sudden turnaround cancelling the contract on September 21. It said a concluded contract could not be terminated by the BCCI, which could only reject a tender bid before finalising the contract.
Zee filed a writ petition in the apex court after the BCCI informed the Bombay High Court that it had cancelled the contract awarded to Zee. Following this, ESPN-Star Sports that had challenged the award of contract to Zee withdrew its petition.

In the petition before the Supreme Court, Zee sought a direction to the BCCI not to grant the telecast rights to any other channel before adjudication of the dispute raised by it and not to enforce any other contract that might have been concluded. The Union of India, the BCCI President, Jagmohan Dalmiya, the Secretary of BCCI, ESPN-Star and Price Waterhouse Coopers Ltd have been cited as respondents.
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IBP merger by December
Mumbai: Indian Oil Corporation will complete the merger of its subsidiary IBP Ltd with itself before December. According to the IOC, investment bankers are finalising the swap ratio for the merger which will be adopted by the boards of the two companies.

J M Morgan Stanley and HSBC have been appointed the advisors for the merger.

According to the company, IBP would be retained as a separate division and would continue selling products under its own brand name. However, IBP being an oil retailing company has suffered because of the spike in international crude prices.

IOC has also said that it has completed the due diligence for acquiring the Indonesian exploration and production company Medco.

Medco is Indonesia's biggest independent exploration and production company owned by Thailand's PTT Exploration and Production PCL and Credit Suisse First Boston. The company had proven reserves of 150 billion cubic feet of gas and 114 million barrels of oil at the end of 2003.

Its market capitalisation is around $500 million.
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Dalmia Consumer Care seeks to advertise non-tobacco bidi
Hyderabad: Dalmia Consumer Care Pvt Ltd is holding talks with the Union Government for securing permission for advertisement of its 'Vardan', a non-tobacco bidi, on television.

The company says that vardan was a safer and healthier alternative that mimics tobacco, without any of its ill effects. Hence, it would be a useful tool in making people to quit tobacco smoking.

The company was currently selling one million vardan bidis a day. Vardan was also being exported to the UK, the US and France. The company had recently received necessary approvals for exporting the product to Australia.
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Kelvinator's new range of washing machines
Kolkata: Electrolux Kelvinator Ltd has earmarked Rs40 crore for marketing and advertising in 2004.

Kelvinator is hopeful of garnering a 20 per cent share of the domestic market for front-loading washing machines. As of now, 95 per cent of the company's turnover is accounted for by sales of refrigerators.
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