document.writeln("

VSNL listing at NYSE: Ratan Tata rings opening bell
Mumbai: Tata group chairman Ratan Tata on Monday marked the completion of listing of group company Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) by ringing the opening bell at the exchange.

Tata rang the opening bell at NYSE, for the second time, the first one being during the listing of VSNL's address earlier this year, the company said in a release here.

"It is an honour to celebrate VSNL's fifth anniversary of listing at the NYSE on Independence Day. The listing has given the company a greater international visibility and is in many ways a reflection of our global vision," VSNL chairman Subodh Bhargava said.
Back to News Review index page  

Ispat completes takes over of Bulgarian steel mill
Sofia: Global Steel Holdings, a unit of Indian steelmaker Ispat Industries has taken over Bulgaria's largest steel mill, Kremikovtzi, after its representatives were voted to the Bulgarian firm's supervisory board, company sources said.

In April, Ispat had signed a preliminary deal, worth an estimated US$400mn in cash and future investments, to take over Kremikovtzi. With the voting in of its representatives onto the company's board, Global Steel Holdings has now acquired the 71% stake previously held by Bulgarian Finmetals Holding.

Global Steel is expected to have paid around US$100mn, or possibly a bit more, for Finmetals' shares and has said it would invest another US$300mn into the Bulgarian firm over three years after the takeover.

Kremikovtzi, a former debt-ridden state-owned steel mill, was originally privatised for a token US$1 in 1999.
Back to News Review index page  

ONGC and Mittal group bid for PetroKazakhstan
Dehradun: Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), acting in concert with steel tycoon L N Mittal, has bid for the Canadian owned oil and gas company PetroKazakhstan in Kazakhstan. ONGC and the Mittal Group have floated two joint venture companies on July 23, which will target oil and gas opportunities in central Asian countries and Africa.

ONGC aims to capitalise on the steel giant's 'goodwill' in countries like Kazakhstan to bag mega deals like PetroKazakhstan, officials of the state-run oil firm said.

India's largest oil producer, ONGC holds 49.98 percent stake in both the joint venture companies while L N Mittal will have 48.02 percent equity. The remaining two percent would be with ICICI.

ONGC Mittal Energy Ltd, a joint venture between ONGC Videsh Ltd - the overseas arm of ONGC - and Mittal Investments Sarl, would focus on acquisition of oil and gas firms and exploration business. (See report: Chinese oil companies in the fray for PetroKazakhstan as well).
Back to News Review index page  

Chinese oil companies in the fray for PetroKazakhstan as well
Hong Kong: Chinese state-owned oil companies are bidding head to head with Indian oil majors for PetroKazakhstan, a Canadian company with oil fields in Kazakhstan.

A joint venture of the China National Petroleum Corporation, China's biggest oil company, and PetroChina, its publicly traded subsidiary, offered roughly US$3.2 billion late Monday for PetroKazakhstan, sources have indicated.

The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, India's main state-owned oil company, has already reportedly submitted a bid of US$3.6bn in cooperation with the steel maker Mittal Group.

PetroKazakhstan, whose shares are traded in Toronto, issued a statement from its headquarters in Calgary, Alberta, after the close of trading that it had received proposals to acquire the entire company. The company announced in late June that it had been approached by suitors, and investment bankers had identified the China National Petroleum Corporation and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation as being interested.

While the Chinese bid appeared to be lower than the Indian bid, Chevron's successful pursuit of Unocal this summer despite a higher bid from Cnooc Ltd. of China has shown that the higher bid does not always win in a politically charged industry like energy.

The China National Petroleum Corporation already has substantial oil investments of its own in Kazakhstan, and has been trying to build a pipeline to carry the oil to China. The Chinese government has been actively courting Kazakhstan as well, partly because Beijing officials want to make sure that no Muslim insurgency develops in heavily Muslim areas of Xinjiang Province near the Kazakh border.

PetroKazakhstan has been locked in bitter disputes with the Kazakh government over its flaring of natural gas and other issues. An Indian buyer of PetroKazakhstan would face a more difficult challenge in exporting oil from Kazakhstan, which does not share a border with India. Oil experts said that an Indian buyer might need to export the oil through Russia, further increasing Kazakhstan's dependence on Russia at a time when Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic, has been trying to develop a broader array of international relationships.

This probably explains the cheaper bid from the Chinese, analysts said.

The two countries together hold 37 percent of the world's population. India's oil imports rose 11 percent last year while China's soared 33 percent, although part of China's increase last year reflected stockpiling, and the pace of Chinese imports has started to slow this year.(See Report: ONGC and Mittal group bid for PetroKazakhstan)
Back to News Review index page  

FICCI survey: 84 per cent of foreign companies give country a positive assessment
New Delhi: The Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry's (FICCI) annual survey on foreign direct investment finds that 70 per cent of the foreign companies are making profits from their Indian operations and 84 per cent of the surveyed companies have given a `positive' assessment of the country.

Over 91 per cent of the respondents said there are opportunities for greater FDI inflow in their own industry sector.

Eighty four per cent of the companies surveyed are planning expansion of their Indian operations. India's attraction as a source of skilled IT/BPO workforce was rated as `high' by 90 per cent of the respondents. However, India's attraction in terms of being an export platform or manufacturing base was rated as `high' by only 34 per cent and 32 per cent respectively.
Back to News Review index page  

Muthuraman: Tata steel eyeing acquisitions in South-East Asia
Jamshedpur: Tata steel has said it was eyeing a second overseas acquisition in South-East Asia this year and would continue to look at further pickings.

"We are eyeing a second overseas acquisition in South-East Asia during the course of this year and we will continue to look at further acquisitions," Managing Director B Muthuraman said in a speech after hoisting the tricolour on Independence Day here.

However, he did not specify the location and the amount involved.

Referring to the company's performance, the MD said it was strong and healthy.

"Tata steel has never been in a stronger position than it is today with good people, a modern and world class plant, with good products, and customers with whom we have built long term and sustainable relationships," Muthuraman said.

He said the company had "ambitious plans" that would take steel production to "15 million tons by 2010 and to 25 million tons by 2015."

He said that the company produced 5 million tons of steel at Jamshedpur and 2 million tons overseas, adding that the expansion of production in Jamshedpur to 7 million tons was ongoing and would be completed in 2008.

"Thereafter, the Jamshedpur works will be expanded to 10 million tons. We have asked the state government to provide us with adequate iron ore reserves," the Managing Director said.
Back to News Review index page  

Kerala's Asian School of Business set for launch
Thiruvananthapuram: The Asian School of Business, billed as one of the country's premier B-schools, is all set begin functioning here from today with 30 students.

The latest educational venture of Oman based Keralite George M. Thomas has come up over 12,000 sq ft in the Technopark campus near here.

"The institute would offer MBA equivalent programmes and be called Asian School of Business (ASB)," said Thomas, who launched Kerala's first international school in 2003 and an international playschool here earlier this year.

The ASB's board of governors is headed by S. Ramadorai, CEO and managing director of Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. The director is S. Jagdish, a former professor at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Bangalore.
Back to News Review index page  

Dredging Corp mulling JVs for Sethusamudram project
Visakhapatnam: The Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) has hired a reputed consultant to suggest areas of improvement, in its attempt to become globally competitive, company officials said.

DCI has also nominated one of the contractors for the Sethusamudram Project and had started work on it. "The DCI is at present dredging in E3-E4 stretch of the channel. For the remaining phases, the corporation is looking to have joint ventures with major international companies," he said.

Officials said the corporation's work in Bahrain was commendable.
Back to News Review index page  

StanChart Bank is title sponsor for the Afro-Asia Cup
New Delhi: With the title sponsor for the Afro-Asia Cup 2005, being the Standard Chartered Bank, the Cup has now been re-christened as `The Standard Chartered Afro Asia Cup, 2005'.

While the Asian team is being sponsored by Hero Honda, the African team is being sponsored by Sahara Computers, the info tech division of the Sahara Group.

Commenting on the company's association with the tournament, Standard Chartered, officials said that, Standard Chartered bank being the leading international bank in Asia and Africa,its association with the event underlines this position.

All games of the tournament would be played in South Africa with the first game to be played at Centurian, Pretoria on August 17 while the second and the third game is to be played at Kingsmead, Durban on August 20 and August 21 respectively.

Nimbus Sport holds the commercial rights to the tournament. The tournament would be broadcast in India by ZEE TV and ZEE Sports while Nimbus Sport International would broadcast it internationally on broadband Internet at www.williow.tv
Back to News Review index page