Boeing deal: Airbus asks for CVC evaluation
New Delhi: A day after Air India said it wanted to buy all fifty of its new aircraft from Boeing, its rival Airbus has demanded that all documents regarding the tendering process be sent to the Central Vigilance Commission for a "stand-alone evaluation".

Airbus said it was "astonished " at the announcement and that it wants a fresh tender announced. According to Airbus, they are astonished because the A-330 was the only aircraft which met the tender requirements.

Nigel Harwood, Airbus Industries' Vice President (Sales) also said that his company had written several letters since November last to the Indian flag carrier, raising several issues pertaining to the tender conditions, but had received no response.
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RIL sends notice to Reliance Energy on audited accounts
Mumbai: By way of a riposte to the charge of absence of disclosure of information in financial accounts by Anil Ambani, the Reliance Group's flagship company RIL has sent a notice to Reliance Energy, headed by Anil Ambani, for not submitting audited accounts to the parent company.

REL, however, has refuted the charge.

RIL, in its letter, has said "it came as a shock to us that even though the REL Board had approved the audited accounts on April 14, we were informed on April 25 that discussions with our auditors on accounts have not concluded. Hence, we regret our inability to the release of account for 2004-05".

REL spokesperson contested the charges saying accounts were furnished to RIL on the "date of publication of results" i.e, April 14, and subsequent details were also given to the parent company.

The communication from RIL company secretary Vinod Ambani to REL's executive Vice Chairman Satish Seth, copies of which were sent to Anil and other directors, has asked for a reply by "tomorrow evening".
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Gujarat Pipavav raises Rs125 crore equity from IDF
Mumbai: The Gujarat Pipavav Port Ltd (GPPL) has raised Rs125 crore equity from IDFC Private Equity-managed the India Development Fund (IDF).

After the recent capital restructuring, APM Terminals (APMT), part of the A.P. Moller-Maersk Group, is now the single largest shareholder with complete management of GPPL, which is India's first port in the private sector.

IDF, which is India's largest domestic infrastructure private equity fund, will join the board of GPPL.

According to GPPL officials over the last few years, the APMT Group has created world-class port facilities at Salalah, Oman and Tanjung Palepas, Malaysia, and they said that they expect to replicate these successes at Pipavav.
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Maruti rolls out five millionth car
New Delhi: The Maruti Udyog Ltd (MUL) has rolled out its five-millionth car, a WagonR, from its facility in Haryana.

"Maruti's five millionth vehicle is a milestone not just for Maruti, but also for India and Indian manufacturing," Maruti MD Khattar said in a statement. The first Maruti vehicle, a Maruti 800, had rolled out on December 14, 1983. The company achieved its first million units in sales in March 1994.

The statement added that the five million landmark has come at a time when the Maruti-Suzuki partnership is in the process of increasing its commitment to India. The Maruti board recently approved a proposal to invest Rs3,272 crore in a new car plant and an engine and transmission facility at Manesar in Haryana.
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Ginni Filaments to invest Rs200 crore towards expansion
New Delhi: Ginni Filaments Ltd, a 100 per cent export-oriented unit producing yarns and knitted fabrics, is planning to invest around Rs200 crore by the middle of next year to expand the existing capacity and execute forward integration to its existing areas of business.

This includes a new Rs35 crore processing unit, which is expected to go on-stream shortly, and a greenfield plant for non-woven products.

Company officials said that they are looking at investing Rs200 crore till June 2006 in order to expand the capacity of our spinning, knitting and processing facilities. To fund the expansion, the company may also look at tapping the capital market some time around September-October.

The company also plans to set up a greenfield facility for non-woven products at an investment of Rs130 crore and plans to get into the garmenting business to vertically integrate across the textile value chain.

Ginni Filaments, which has been producing yarns and grey fabrics for the last fourteen years, has now entered the fabric-processing business with the commissioning of the new processing unit in Kosi, Uttar Pradesh. The new unit is expected to take up the company's turnover from Rs200 crore to Rs260 crore.
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Arvind Mills to buy out ICICI Ventures stake in Arvind Brands
Bangalore: The Arvind Mills Ltd has decided to buy back 53.4 per cent stake in associate company, Arvind Brands Ltd, from ICICI Ventures for Rs106 crore.

The Sanjay Lalbhai-managed Arvind Mills owns the remaining 46.6 per cent stake in the company, which is the country's second largest branded apparel maker.

ICICI Ventures picked up majority stake in Arvind Brands on the back of a convertible debt in May 2004. At the time of transaction, it was stated that Arvind Mills will in future acquire an additional 5 per cent stake in Arvind Brands, thereby bringing its holding in the company to 51 per cent and reducing ICICI Venture's stake to 49 per cent.

Arvind Brands, with a portfolio of leading formalwear and casualwear names such as Arrow, Lee, Tommy Hilfiger, Wrangler and Excalibur, saw its top line revenues jump 43 per cent in the last financial year, 2004-05, to touch Rs315 crore.

The company is projecting top line revenues of Rs435 crore in the ongoing financial year with the branded apparel market tipped to grow at about 15 per cent annually.
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IVRCL to pick up 70 per cent equity in Hindustan Dorr-Oliver
Hyderabad: IVRCL Infrastructures and Projects Ltd has decided to acquire 70 per cent equity in Hindustan Dorr-Oliver Ltd (HDO) from Jumbo World Holdings Ltd and its associates for Rs53.9 crore. An agreement to this effect has been entered into with Jumbo World Holdings Ltd.

IVRCL has informed the BSE that its board of directors at its meeting on April 27 had passed a resolution approving the decision. IVRCL will make an open offer to the other shareholders of HDO for acquiring a minimum of 20 per cent of the shareholding of the company in compliance with SEBI (SAST).

According to IVRCL, the capabilities and pre-qualifications of HDO in the water and environment sector fit in with the company's growth strategy and will enable IVRCL to jointly qualify and bid for large turnkey projects in the water and environment sectors.

The design and technical expertise of HDO, coupled with its manufacturing ability and infrastructure, adds strategic value to the company, officials said in a press release. HDO also occupies a niche position with respect to solid-liquid separation equipment and systems, and complete turnkey project execution in the mineral, pulp, fertiliser and oil sectors.

HDO's turnover for 2004-05 is Rs75 crore.
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Prestige Estates to develop luxury hotel for Hilton
Bangalore: Prestige Estates Projects, a property development company, has announced a tie-up with hospitality major Hilton International for developing a luxury hotel in Bangalore.
The hotel, to be promoted by Prestige at a cost of Rs200 crore, will be managed by Hilton.

This is the second international brand to associate with a domestic player for a hotel project in Bangalore, after Marriot announced its intention to partner a Mumbai investor in managing a property in the city.

Announcing the details of the project at a joint news conference the Prestige group said that the Hilton Bangalore will have 300 rooms with modern facilities and is expected to be ready by mid-2007.

The Prestige group has completed 120 projects in the residential and IT infrastructure sectors. It has recently announced the launch of a project called Shantiniketan, a 105-acre township containing about 3,000 apartments, a multiplex, a shopping mall, and a World Trade Centre.

According to Hilton International officials the Hilton Bangalore would combine contemporary architecture with local culture. Since India is emerging as a fast growing economy, Hilton is planning five more ventures in the country, he added.
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Corporate Results: RIL, Carborundum, Patni, Cognizant, Virinchi, Polaris Software
RIL Q4 net profit jumps 61.5 per cent
Mumbai: Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has posted strong fourth quarter results. Beating analysts' expectations, the company's net profit for the quarter zoomed to Rs2,292 crore, up 61.5 per cent from Rs1,419 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

With today's results, the company has posted record profits for the eighth straight quarter. Total income of the Reliance Group's flagship has increased from Rs14,585 crore to Rs18,315 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2005. For the financial year 2004-2005, RIL has posted a whopping 46.4 per cent jump in net profit at Rs7,572 crore as compared to Rs5,160 crore in the last fiscal.

The EPS for the fourth quarter stood at Rs16.4, up from Rs10, while for the FY'05 it stands at Rs54.24.

RIL has announced a whopping 75 per cent dividend, with the shareholders getting Rs7.50 per share of Rs10 each.

In a press statement, RIL said that the company became the first private sector entity to record a net profit of over $1.7 billion.

RIL's turnover during the year stood at Rs73,164 crore in 2004-05 compared to Rs56,247 crore in 2003-04, recording a growth of 30 per cent.

Carborundum net up 21 per cent
Chennai: Carborundum Universal Ltd has reported a net profit of Rs38 crore for last year, which is 21 per cent more than its achievement of Rs32 crore in the previous year. Sales increased to Rs357 crore from Rs314 crore previously.

The board of directors has recommended a dividend of 100 per cent, that is, Rs2 for each share of Rs2 face value. The dividend last year was 125 per cent, but it included a special dividend of 25 per cent for the centenary year.

The board has also approved an issue of bonus shares in the ratio of one share for every one held.

During 2005-06, the company plans to incur capital expenditure of Rs 75 crore. The plan includes setting up of a coated abrasives plant at Sriperumbudur (near Chennai), establishment of facilities for manufacture of certain premium electro mineral products and also expansion/modernisation of the existing facilities for various abrasive, industrial ceramics, super refractories and electro-mineral products.

Patni Q1 net up 21 per cent
Mumbai: Patni Computer Systems Ltd has reported a net profit of Rs68.23 crore for its first quarter ended March 31, 2005 compared to Rs55.96 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2004, an increase of 21 per cent.

The company reported revenues of Rs433.75 crore for the quarter, an increase of 38 per cent over Rs312.74 crore last year.

It had recently announced ADS offering, the proceeds of which will be primarily used for the construction and development of new infrastructure facilities.

Cognizant Q1 net rises 62 per cent
Chennai: Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation, the US-based provider of IT services has reported a net profit of $32 million on revenues of $182 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2005, as against a net profit of $20 million on revenues of $120 million for the corresponding quarter last year.

This represents a 62-per cent increase in net profit, according to a company press release.

Cognizant added over 1,700 associates in the first quarter and ended the quarter with approximately 17,000 employees.

Based on current visibility, the company said in the second quarter revenue is anticipated to be at least $206 million, including an expected contribution of approximately $6 million from the recently acquired consultancy, Fathom.

The fiscal 2005 revenue is likely to be at least $870 million, including an expected contribution from Fathom of approximately $20 million.

Virinchi net up 59 per cent
Hyderabad: Virinchi Technologies, an e-business collaboration solutions provider, closed the financial year 2004-05 with a growth of 71.85 per cent to register turnover of Rs18.3 crore against Rs10.65 crore in the previous fiscal.

Net profit after tax increased by 59.1 per cent to Rs5.72 crore against Rs3.6 crore.

The total income for the fourth quarter is Rs5.48 crore against Rs4.34 crore during the comparative quarter of 2003-04. Net profit after tax increased by 9.75 per cent to Rs1. 9 crore from Rs1.7 crore.

Polaris Software posts lower net
Chennai: Polaris Software Lab Ltd has reported reduced net profit of Rs5.80 crore on revenues of Rs196.42 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2005 as against a net profit of Rs10.52 crore on revenues of Rs170.30 crore for the corresponding quarter last year.

For the year ended March 31, 2005, the company reported a net profit of Rs74.26 crore on revenues of Rs787.12 crore as against a net profit of Rs74.37 crore on revenues of Rs646.42 crore for the last fiscal, says a company press release.

The board of directors has recommended a dividend of Rs1.75 per equity share of Rs5 (35 per cent) for the year ended March 31, 2005.

Man Investments, one of the world's leading alternative investments players, has selected Polaris for delivery of a large project. Polaris also made an entry into two large banking customers (top ten Wall Street banks) during the quarter.

Polaris is building two additional businesses. Polaris is also in the investment phase for creating a platform Optimum, a complete card-on-demand credit card outsourcing business. Polaris is funding the investments in both the above businesses without any external funding using cash generated from its healthy and profitable service business, the release says.

The board of directors of Polaris has undergone a change. Dipak Rastogi, Head Citigroup Venture Capital International, leaves the board, while Anil Sachdev and Anil Khanna will join the board.

Sachdev is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Grow Talent Company Ltd, a specialist talent management consultancy, and Khanna recently joined Citigroup Venture Capital International and is responsible for cross-border investment opportunities and business services, says the release.

The board has also approved a buyback of equity shares of the company to the extent of Rs49 crore. The buyback will be executed at a price not exceeding Rs115 per share.
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