Daimler Chrysler to launch heavy duty trucks
Bangalore: Daimler Chrysler has received approval from its parent company's commercial vehicle unit in Germany for launching heavy duty trucks, Actros, in India.
The Actros would be imported as CBUs (completely built units) and would hit the roads in January next year. The company plans to launch two models from the tippers and dumpers range. These trucks are expected to be priced around Rs40 lakh.
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ONGC contracts with Australian company for 'smart wells'
Mumbai: The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation has awarded a $215.35-million contract to Australian company Clough Engineering for developing G1-GS15 fields in the Krishna-Godavari offshore for producing 1 million tonne of low-sulphur crude oil and 6 billion cubic metres natural gas over 15 years.

The development of these two fields will create India's first "Digital Oil and Gas Field", incorporating remotely monitored and controlled `Smart' Wells, a news release said.

Speaking on the occasion, Subir Raha, Chairman and Managing Director, said the ONGC board has approved the investment decision on the understanding that the gas produced will be sold at market rates, as this investment is not viable under the prevailing controlled pricing of natural gas.
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ONGC to optimize power capacity utilization
Kolkata: ONGC will invite tenders for forming a power grid network covering its off-shore and on-shore rigs shortly. The rigs put together produce roughly 800-900 MW of captive gas-based power.

While the grid network will help the company optimise its capacity utilisation, ONGC is negotiating with Power Trading Corporation (PTC) to enter into an agreement under which the latter will be selling the surplus power. The company expects to have an exportable surplus of roughly 250 MW.

Meanwhile, the company is discussing with suppliers of power generation equipment for the size of its proposed gas-based power station at Sonamura in Tripura. Though the original proposal was to build a 750-MW power station at a cost of approximately Rs3,500 crore to exploit its idle gas reserves in the State, the project site being located in the hilly region the carrying of plant and machinery to the site may prove to be a critical issue before the company.

"While we are looking for a big capacity to economise on operations, we are now talking to vendors to get an idea of the size of plant and machinery that could be transported to that region," the ONGC Chairman cum Managing Director, Subir Raha, told newspersons here on Wednesday.

The company will shortly form a special purpose vehicle combining Infrastructure Leasing and Finance Corporation and Tripura State Power Development Corporation, to commission the project. ONGC has already received the approval of the Union Government for investing in the project.
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Tata Steel hikes steel prices
New Delhi: Tata Steel has hiked steel prices by Rs500/tonne and has said there will be no increase in prices till March. After the announcement, B Muthuraman, MD, Tata Steel said the hike would partially compensate freight rate hike.

The company has hiked the prices for the first time since August, 2004. Reacting to the news, Essar Steel says there is enough scope for increase in prices
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Reliance cuts prices of products
Mumbai: Reliance Industries Ltd. has cut the prices of six of its nine petrochemicals products, for the month of December. Price of naphtha, used for making these petrochemical products, has fallen in the last few days, prompting India's largest petrochemicals maker to cut prices.

RIL lowered per kilogram prices of polyethylene by Rs1.50 to Rs59.70 a kg, polypropylene prices by Rs2 to Rs61 a kg and poly vinyl chloride prices by Re 1 to Rs51 a kg.

It slashed prices of monoethylene glycol by Rs4.30 to Rs62.40 a kg and purified terephthalic acid by 90 paise to Rs48.30 a kg. Prices of partially oriented yarn are down Rs1.60 to Rs76.40 a kg while polyester staple fibre and linear alkyl benzene prices remain unchanged at Rs71.50 a kg and Rs60.90 a kg.
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Colgate second interim forty per cent
Mumbai: The board of Colgate Palmolive (India) Ltd has recommended a second interim dividend of 40 per cent or Rs4 per share for the financial year ending March 31, 2005.

The interim dividend will be paid on the paid-up equity share capital of Rs135.99 crore involving a total pay out of Rs61.5 crore (including dividend distribution tax).

The company has fixed December 7 as the record date for payment of the interim dividend. The company had earlier offered the first interim dividend of Rs1.50 per share or 15 per cent.
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KEC bags orders for Rs.295 crore
Mumbai: KEC International Ltd, a major player in the power transmission, engineering and construction business, has bagged new orders worth Rs295 crore both in the international and domestic markets.

In the international market, KEC has been awarded the Rs.120-crore order in Abu Dhabi by the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority for supply and installation of 94 km long 220 KV double-circuit overhead lines. In the domestic sector, the company bagged a Rs.175-crore order from Power Grid Corporation of India.

The company's present order book position stands at Rs2,600 crore, a company press release said.
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IIM-B witnesses record summer placements
Bangalore: The Class of 2006 at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, has created history of sorts with 43 students out of 163 getting overseas offers for summer placements.
According to a release by the institute, this is the highest across all IIMs in the country. Some of the companies that have made offers are Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, HSBC, Barclays Capital and Deutsche Bank in various locations across the world.

This year, consulting companies have made a comeback on campus with KPMG, Cap Gemini, Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Accenture participating in summer recruitments. Technofast Consulting made a debut at the institute and made six overseas offers for internships. Other participating companies are IBM (18 offers), ICICI (16 offers), HLL (10), Cognizant (nine) and Citibank (six).

The stipend offered varies between Rs6,000 and Rs75,000 per month, while for overseas offers it is $7,000 per month.
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Reliance Energy to bid for five power distribution companies in UP
Mumbai: Reliance Energy Ltd will bid for five electricity distribution companies in Uttar Pradesh, up for sale through a Government-initiated international bidding process.

This decision was taken by the REL board, which met on Tuesday to consider the resignations of the six directors and related issues, a company statement said here on Wednesday.

The announcement comes amid reports that the Rs11,000-crore investment for building a 3,740-MW power generation unit in Uttar Pradesh was one of the reasons for the disagreement between Anil Ambani, REL Chairman, and his elder brother Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industries Ltd, which is a major shareholder in REL. The Uttar Pradesh Government has reportedly kept the disinvestment of these five companies on hold till a solution to the Reliance discord is in sight.

The five power distribution companies are based in Meerut, Agra, Lucknow, Varanasi and Kanpur. They cater to around 8.5 million consumers with a peak demand of about 6,500 MW. The aggregate annual revenue of these companies is about Rs7,500 crore, the company said.

"The current disinvestment opportunity is the first of its kind after enactment of the Electricity Act, 2003, and is in line with the reform objectives of the Uttar Pradesh Power Policy, 2003. The disinvestment is a part of an extensive reform programme undertaken by the State Government in the power sector and is supported by World Bank," it said.

The State Government has called for request for proposals to pre-qualify interested companies. The entire transaction is scheduled for completion by the end of this financial year.
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Cabinet clears Konark Met merger and Power project for Bikaner
New Delhi: The Union Cabinet has approved the merger of Konark Met Coke Ltd (KMCL) with Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL), the two joint venture projects promoted by the public sector MMTC.

The merger will result in savings of about Rs91 crore per annum to the merged entity with replacement of high cost loans with low interest loans and conversion of Rs61 crore debt into equity/preference share capital, a statement issued after the Cabinet meeting said.

Liquidated damage and penal interest of the combined entity will also be waived and interest and compound interest will be converted into zero coupon bonds by financial institutions and banks.

The statement said the merger would result in better economies of scale, better capacity utilisation and de-bottlenecking of facilities. It will also result in streamlining of administrative functions and savings.

The merged company would also be able to utilise an amount of Rs35 crore which is lying unutilised in the CENVAT account in Konark Met.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved a proposal of Neyveli Lignite Corporation to set up a 250-MW lignite-fired thermal power plant in Bikaner district of Rajasthan. The CCEA, which met under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, also approved the associated lignite-mining project.

The 2x125 MW power project would cost Rs1,114.18 crore while the 2.1-million tonnes per annum mining project at Village Barsingsar, Bikaner, would cost Rs254.07 crore, a Government statement issued after the CCEA meeting said.

The Barsingsar mine project will meet the lignite requirement of thermal power plant. The power generated from the thermal power project (2x125 MW units) will cater to the demand of Rajasthan, it said.

The Union Cabinet also gave its approval for signing, on behalf of the Customs Administration of the Government, the International Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters.
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Maruti sales rise 7.8 per cent in November
New Delhi: Maruti Udyog Ltd, India's largest car manufacturer, has reported a 7.8 per cent jump in sales in November even though its flagship model Maruti 800 car saw a sharp decline.

Maruti sold 42,842 units in November 2004 as opposed to 39,745 units in the same month last year, a company statement said. Sales were driven by the company's compact cars (Alto, Zen and WagonR), the combined sales of which jumped by 46.7 per cent in the month.

During the April-November 2004 period, Maruti has reported an 18.8 per cent jump in sales to 3,45,713 units when compared to 2,90,928 units sold in the corresponding period previous year.
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Hero Honda sales rise 15 per cent
New Delhi: Hero Honda has registered a 15 per cent increase in sales of its motorcycles in November 2004 to 2,35,836 units compared with 2,04,533 motorcycles sold during the same month last year.

According to a company statement, capacity constraints capped further growth.

The cumulative sales of the company have grown by 29 per cent from 13,17,248 motorcycles sold during April-November 2003 to 17,05,230 motorcycles sold during the same period in 2004.
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TVS bike sales up 35 per cent
Chennai: The TVS Motor Company sold 65,066 motorcycles in November compared with 48,052 units in the same period last year - a growth of 35 per cent.

Buoyed by a good demand for motorcycles the total two-wheeler sales clocked 1,07,830 units, recording a growth of 26 per cent, the company has said in a press release.

TVS Scooty continued to dominate the scooterette segment (sub 100 cc category) recording 20,646 units in November 2004 compared to 16,803 units in the same period last year, registering a growth of 23 per cent. TVS Moped clocked 22,118 units in November 2004 compared to 20,601 units during the same period last year. The company continues to maintain its market leadership in mopeds.
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Bajaj Auto sales up 35 per cent in November
Mumbai: Bajaj Auto Ltd has said that it has had a record sale of two- and three-wheelers during November at 1,82,360 units, a 35.7 per cent increase from last November's sales of 1,34,363 vehicles.

Motorcycle sales also touched a record high of 1,66,626 units, higher by 47.2 per cent from last November's 1,13,164 units. Exports moved up marginally to 15,519 vehicles (15,424 vehicles). For the April-November 2004 period, total vehicle sales increased by 15.6 per cent to 11,77,471 units (10,18,164 units).

Motorcycle sales during the eight-month period increased by 32 per cent to 9,09,839 units (6,89,035 units). Three-wheeler sales increased by 4.3 per cent to 1,53,555 units (147,262 units).
As Bajaj plants are closed for annual plant maintenance in the last week of December, the shortages in product availability are expected to be gradually overcome during the last quarter of the fiscal, a news release said.
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Microsoft plans research facility in Bangalore
Bangalore: Microsoft Research has said that it has selected Bangalore as the location for its third research facility outside the US.

Microsoft Research Lab India Pvt Ltd, scheduled to open in January 2005, plans to employ about 24 scientists, interns and support staff in the first year, the company said in a press release.
The India mission of the lab will be to conduct long-term basic and applied research. It will also collaborate with Indian research institutions and universities as part of Microsoft's ongoing commitment to engaging with academic and scientific communities worldwide to accelerate scientific progress and innovation in computer science and software engineering.
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Infosys wins Global MAKE award for the second time
Bangalore: Infosys Technologies has said that it has won the Global MAKE (Most Admired Knowledge Enterprise) award for 2004, second time in a row. Infosys, which is the only Indian company to ever be named a Global MAKE had won the award for the first time in 2003.

The seventh annual Global MAKE study recognises Infosys for its strength in knowledge performance dimension in transforming organisational knowledge into shareholder value, creating an environment for collaborative knowledge sharing and development knowledge workers through senior management leadership, the company said in a press release.

The MAKE programme is administered by Teleos, an independent knowledge management research company. The MAKE research programme consists of the annual Global MAKE study - the international benchmark for best practice knowledge organisations, and similar studies at regional/national levels.
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Spectrum policy to address 1900 Mhz band allocation
New Delhi: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, has said that the spectrum policy to be announced this month will address the controversy between GSM and CDMA operators over allocation of radio frequency for third generation services (3G) services in the 1900 Mhz band.

TRAI has said that the policies would have to be dictated by standards laid down by the International Telecommunications Union (IT) and the availability of equipment.

Both CDMA and GSM operators have been clamouring for the 1900 Mhz spectrum. While GSM operators say that allowing CDMA services in 1900 Mhz would create interference in their cellular network, the CDMA players say that there is no equipment available for any other frequency.

GSM operators are also opposing the entry of CDMA players in the 1900 Mhz on grounds that internationally the band has been reserved for third generation services. On the other hand, CDMA operators highlight the fact that globally there are only two other countries where CDMA networks are running on frequencies other than the 1900 Mhz band.

The telecom regulator today reiterated that it will reduce access deficit charges (ADC) and the revised guideline would be issued next week. ADC is a levy imposed on private operators to fund rural telephones offered by the state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. The reduction would result in lower telecom tariffs.
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palmOne unveils new phones
New Delhi: Palmone, Inc has announced the launch of the Treo600 smart phone and Tungsten T5 handheld in the country and indicated that it continues to explore India as a possible software location.

The Treo600 smart phone has a built-in QWERTY keyboard and is priced at about Rs27,499 (excluding taxes). The Treo600 smart phone combines a full-featured mobile phone and Palm OS organiser with wireless applications such as e-mail, text messaging and Web browsing into one compact, powerful device.

The Tungsten T5 handheld has 256 MB of flash memory that doubles as a portable flash memory drive and keeps the data protected even if the device loses its charge. It is aimed at providing productivity-minded mobile professionals, the ability to carry more data and applications. The handheld comes with a price tag of Rs22,999 (excluding taxes).

Documents, PowerPoint presentations, photos and even videos can be viewed in the landscape or portrait mode on the Tungsten T5 handheld's 320x480 display. An Intel 416 MHz XScale processor provides plenty of power, and with its slim and sleek design, it fits easily into a loose pocket.
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Reliance to set up IT solutions centre at Kolkata
Kolkata: The Reliance Group will set up an IT solutions development-cum-services centre in Kolkata. This will be the first time that the group will set up such a centre outside of Mumbai, according to Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries Ltd.

The group will also set up a Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information & Communications.

Ambani said that the Reliance Group had already made an investment of around Rs1,000 crore through group company, Reliance Infocomm. The proposed solutions development and services centre would engage around 2,500 people within the next three years.

Ambani said Kolkata had emerged as an attractive destination for new economy companies and heaped praise on the State Government's IT Department for the fast pace with which it worked. He said Kolkata had the "knowledge-edge" and, therefore, the potential to leapfrog to development in the new economy era.

Kiran Karnik, President of Nasscom, said it was time to develop Siliguri as a major IT centre because it was the gateway to the North East and "that is the city through which trade with China is going to be conducted in the future".
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Nokia to invest $150 million for handset facility in India
New Delhi: Telecom major Nokia has announced an investment of up to $150 million over the next four years to set up a mobile handset manufacturing facility in India. The unit is expected to give employment to about 2,000 people.

Announcing the initiative, Nokia, said: "India's position at the heart of a rapidly growing mobile communication region makes it an attractive option for establishing our new manufacturing facility here. The factory would be an integral part of our global manufacturing network and help fulfil the growing demand as mobile communications become increasingly affordable and available to more people in this diverse region."

The company is likely to finalise the site for the manufacturing plant and other pre-requisites like logistics by the first quarter of 2005 and hopes to roll out the first handset from the Indian facility by the end of 2005 or early 2006. The company said India would be among the top five markets in terms of sale of handsets and among top three in terms of subscribers.

At present, India has more than 42 million mobile users and this is expected to touch a 100 million by 2005, according to industry estimates. In India, Nokia is the market leader when it comes to mobile phones. The company also has set up software development facility in the country.
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Tata Tele and LG tie up for CDMA handsets
Mumbai: Tata Teleservices has tied up with LG Electronics Inc, to launch the LG AD 5235 handset, a 65000-colour CDMA folder handset powered by BREW technology.

The BREW operating systems has high speed mobile interface for delivering mobile features, and is priced to suit Indian pockets, said a news release from the company, which did not mention the actual price.

The other features of the handset are: rhythmic lights in seven different styles to receive calls and messages, 16-polyphonic sound, 41 preloaded ringtones, 10 downloadable, 50 SMS box with group SMS, a 500x4 phonebook, scheduler and a data speed of 144 kbps for modem, fax and email.

It also comes with a Hindi user interface. The model will be available at all Tata Indicom retail outlets and will be rolled out in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Chennai, said the release.
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Tata Coffee launches Bean Coffee Junction
Chennai: Tata Coffee is targeting the number two position in the branded filter coffee segment by selling its entire production in value-added form.

Bean Coffee Junction is the company's latest retailing initiative that not only offers freshly roasted and ground coffee blended to consumers' preference, but also allows them to taste the blend. Consumers will have a choice of five different blends. What's more, a database of the consumer's personalised taste and preferences will also be maintained.

Bean Coffee Junction is the first of several outlets that the company plans to roll out across South India. The initiative will enable the brand to reach out to the entire spectrum of the coffee market from packaged coffee, roast and ground coffee to liquid coffee. The company plans to open 30 such outlets in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu through the franchisee route. Bean Coffee Junction will be promoted with a number of events to build the brand, he told reporters.

The company was also part of a generic campaign by the Coffee Board under the auspices of the International Coffee Organisation to promote coffee in India. A task force has been formed for this purpose. The company is one of Asia's largest integrated coffee conglomerates and produces 10 million kg of coffee from 7,000 hectares spread over 17 estates across Chickmagalur, Coorg and Hassan districts in Karnataka.

India produces about 300 million kg of coffee every year and 80 per cent of this is exported.
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