NIIT Tech to acquire majority stake in UK firm
New Delhi: NIIT Technologies has acquired a majority stake in UK-based insurance solution provider Room Solutions for $25 million in an all-cash deal. Room Solutions will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of NIIT Technologies.

Company sources in the Indian firm said, "The company has acquired a 51 per cent stake at present, and would acquire the remaining 49 per cent equity over 18 months."

The UK firm reported revenue of $25 million in 2005-06 and has 120 employees. NIIT Tech would fund the acquisition through debt and internal accruals in addition to the fact that it has an $18 million line of credit from banks.

Rajendra S Pawar, chairman of NIIT Tech, in a release issued to the BSE said: "Room Solutions strengthens the company's insurance capability by bringing in deep domain expertise in the commercial insurance space."
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Khaitan Electricals to issue pref shares
Hyderabad: The board of Khaitan Electricals Ltd (KEL) at its meeting held on Monday has decided to convene an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on June 5 to seek their consent for the proposed preferential offer of equity shares. The company proposes to issue 12 lakh equity shares of Rs10 each at a premium of Rs129.30 per share (offer price Rs139.30) to promoters. It also plans to issue 30 lakh equity shares of Rs10 each at a premium of Rs129.30 per share (offer price Rs139.30) to proposed strategic investors, the company informed the stock exchanges.
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Gujarat NRE to hike stake in Australian company to 85 pc
Kolkata: In a mine transfer and share swap deal, Gujarat NRE Coke plans to hike its share of the equity stake in Australian listed company Zelos to 85 per cent. Gujarat NRE Coke holds 19 per cent of the equity stake in Zelos, which is engaged in mineral exploration and development of mineral assets in Australia's New South Wales and Tasmania regions.

Arun Kumar Jagatramka, managing director of Gujarat NRE Coke, said the group had acquired its second coal mine in Australia — named NRE Avondale — through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Gujarat NRE Coke SCGL, in July last year for a lease transfer price of AS$2 million. Subsequently, a further AS$1 million had been spent on investigations, preparation of the mine plan and on exploring various other options. Work for opening the mine, which has been closed for the past 20 years, began on May 4. Located in the southern coalfields of New South Wales, NRE Avondale has reserves of 200 million tonnes and a recoverable life period of 30 years.

Jagatramka said it had been proposed to transfer the lease of NRE Avondale to Zelos in lieu of a share swap deal that has been valued at AS$34 million. When the deal is concluded, Gujarat NRE Coke's share of the equity stake in Zelos will go up from 19 per cent at present to 85 per cent. According to him, Gujarat NRE Coke has invested a total of AS$50 million on various business initiatives in Australia. It first acquired the NRE No.1 colliery, which is located 18 km north of NRE Avondale. NRE No.1 has reserves of 300 million tonnes and a mine life of 100 years, he said.
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Nava Bharat Ferro Alloys in expansion plans
Hyderabad: Nava Bharat Ferro Alloys is embarking upon a major expansion programme with an investment of over Rs350 crore in the next couple of years. The company would invest in setting up an integrated sugar, bio-fuel project and a cogeneration facility and a greenfield power project and expand into infrastructure through the special purpose vehicle (SPV) route, according to the company's director (finance), G.R.K. Prasad.
The company is taking up the expansion to offset the uncertainties arising out of the cyclical nature of the ferro alloys sector. Prasad said, "We have already reduced ferro alloy contribution to overall turnover through power and sugar, and going forward, we expect the contribution of ferro alloys could be brought down to around 50 per cent," Mr Prasad said.

Nava Bharat Ferro Alloys proposes to set up an integrated sugar plant with a capacity of 2,500 tcd, a distillery of 40-klpd capacity and a cogeneration facility of 25MW at Shanti Ashram near the existing sugar plant. This project is estimated to cost around Rs150 crore.

The company also plans to set up a coal-based greenfield power plant in Orissa with a 60 MW capacity at an investment of around Rs190 crore.

In the power business segment, Nava Bharat Ferro Alloys proposes to pursue merchant sale opportunities and use a portion of the power generation for captive purpose. Both the integrated sugar plant and the greenfield power facility will be completed in two years, said Mr Prasad.

The company is also looking at venturing into infrastructure in a big way through the SPV route and has bid for the metro rail project (MRTS) in Hyderabad, a national highway project in Madhya Pradesh and an industry-specific special economic zone (SEZ) project.

The company also proposes to change its name to Nava Bharat Ventures, subject to necessary approvals.
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Glenmark signs marketing pact with Aspen US
Mumbai: Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has entered into a marketing deal with Aspen US, that isx its its second marketing agreement announced this month targeting the pain segment in the United States.

Executed through Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inc (GPI), the wholly-owned subsidiary of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd, the deal is a supply and marketing agreement. It covers the joint manufacturing and marketing of three generic controlled-substance pharmaceutical products for the US market, a Glenmark note said.
The solid-dose medicines target the pain management segment and have a cumulative market size of about $44 million, the company said.

Aspen will supply products to GPI, which will market them under the Glenmark label. Glenmark expects to launch these products over a three-month period starting May 2006. Glenmark will pay out an initial milestone to Aspen in order to get exclusive marketing rights to the products, which will be sold across retail as well as hospital segments. The two parties will share the profits on net sales in the US market, the note said.

Glenmark shares were up 9.28 per cent at Rs371.65 on the BSE.
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HPCL-Total JV starts work on cavern unit
New Delhi: Hindustan Petroleum Corporation's JV with Total of France has commenced work on the project for storage of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) at Visakhapatnam. South Asia LPG Company, the 50:50 joint venture formed in 1999, has been involved in development of the project, which is estimated to cost Rs333 crore and is likely to be completed by the middle of 2007.

The cavern, because of its large storage capacity, is expected to help import of LPG in large parcels thereby reducing the freight costs.

The joint venture company with Total was set up following Government's suggestion that the state-owned oil marketing companies involved in marketing of LPG should play a supportive role by forming joint ventures for infrastructure development of additional import facilities, tankages, pipelines, as well as bottling plants and promote parallel marketing of LPG.

According to industry sources, underground cavern storages are considered to be the safest means of storing hydrocarbons.
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Zensar finds mention in KMWorld 100
Pune: Zensar Technologies, software services and BPO organisation, has found mention in KMWorld Magazine, in its `100 Companies that Matter' in knowledge management for 2006. The list has been compiled through the publication's panel with knowledge management (KM) practitioners, theorists, vendors, analysts and customers.

Hugh McKellar, editor-in-chief of KMWorld, said "The primary purpose of the `100 Companies that Matter' list is to acknowledge "companies that have helped create, enhance or define a market, and display a remarkable capacity for agile, customer-driven innovations."
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VSNL buys Indian ISP for EV of Rs.75-cr
Mumbai: Videsh Sanchar Nigam (VSNL) has signed a share purchase agreement to acquire Direct Internet (DIL) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Primus Telecommunications India (PTIL), for Enterprise Value of Rs 75 crore. VSNL informed the BSE, "PTIL provides fixed broadband wireless Internet services to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in several cities in India."

"The completion of the transaction is subject to a number of conditions precedent, and is expected to be over in the next few weeks," the release added.
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Ruchi Soya to introduce new variants in foods
Mumbai: Ruchi Soya Industries, of the Ruchi Group of companies, is planning to expand its food business by introducing newer products and variants. The company sells soya chunks, granules and flour under the Nutrela brand, and is looking at bringing in more options under the same brand. These could be soya products or may go beyond that."

The company is considering products like ready-to-eat foods, snacks and beverages.

At present, Nutrela accounts for around 25 per cent of the company's turnover which stands at Rs850-900 crore.

Nutrela is among the oldest brands in this category with newer entrant Godrej Foods introducing products like soya milk and cereals under its Sofit brand.
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Srinivasa Shipping ties up pact with Malaysian firm for township project
Chennai: Srinivasa Shipping and Property Development has tied up with Malaysian developer Glomac Bhd for financial and technical support for its next township project in Andhra Pradesh. The company plans to bid for the new 600-acre township project announced by the Andhra Pradesh Government. The company is raising additional capital of about $20 million through the issue of foreign currency convertible bonds. In the first phase, the company will receive $10 million.

The company has set up two special purpose vehicles to develop residential complexes in Hyderabad and Chennai.

Srinivasa Shipping also plans to develop a 90-acre residential project, called `The Retreat', estimated to cost Rs 400 crore at Kollur (about 5 km from the Indian School of Business) near Hyderabad. Srinivasa Shipping has projects worth about Rs 600 crore in Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Srinivasa Shipping is also planning to come out with a rights issue in the ratio of 2:1 at Rs18 per share to raise funds to the tune of Rs14.3 crore.
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