Nokia launches collection of handcrafted mobiles
Mumbai: Nokia has launched Vertu Constellation, the latest in the recent series of handcrafted mobile phones, as part of the constellation collection in India. The collection includes seven handcrafted models - in black, tan, chocolate or pink leather, available in stainless steel and gold finishes. Frank Nuovo is the principal designer for Vertu.

The handset has a large user memory that can store up to 1,000 names in phonebooks, 220 calendar notes, and 100 SMS message. It allows one button access to lifestyle services 24 hours a day from anywhere across the globe.

Through this, you can do your bookings, or simply send a gift to someone around the globe. It also has world weather facilities that will let you know exactly what to expect when you get to your destination and this requires a GPRS connection.

The mobiles are priced from Rs2.5 lakh to Rs10 lakh.
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IVRCL obtains allotment of Noida land
Hyderabad: IVRCL Infrastructures & Projects has obtained allotment of about 43 acres in Sector 119 and 121 for group housing by New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA).

The company, in a release, said that it is planning construction of around 2.8 million sq ft of housing, which is scheduled to commence in December.

Revenues are expected to flow in by way of booking advances, etc., from the last quarter of the current fiscal.

This project would be developed through the company's subsidiary, IVR Prime Urban Developers Ltd (IVR PUDL) which recently commenced construction of a mall and IT park of 2.2 million sq ft at Gachibowli in Hyderabad.
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L&T gets order worth $150mn from Saudi Arabia
Mumbai: Larsen & Toubro, along with its consortium partner, Haldor Topsoe of Denmark, has obtained an order worth $ 150 million for setting up a high-tech methanol and carbon monoxide plants in Saudi Arabia. The order was bagged from Saudi Formaldehyde Chemical Co Ltd.

The scope of work comprises residual basic engineering, detailed engineering, project management and procurement of equipment for the plant. L&T will manufacture some of the critical equipment at its Powai and Hazira facilities.
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Dabhol's LNG terminal to be valued by ICICI
New Delhi: The Petroleum ministry has asked ICICI to value the 5-million-tonne liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal at Dabhol power plant.

The petroleum secretary, M.S. Srinivasan, said ICICI has been asked to value the terminal and it will apprise the Ministry on the issue. He said lenders want restructuring of the debt component of Ratnagiri Gas and Power Pvt (RGPPL), formerly known as Dabhol Power Corp Ltd.

He also said the Government wants Petronet LNG to buy the terminal as the company is emerging as an LNG specialist. If the petroleum ministry is convinced on the matter, it will go to the committee of secretaries and subsequently, it would get the required approval in a week.

The Government was considering hiving off the LNG terminal from the power plant due to delays in completion of the unfinished part of the terminal and huge cost overruns.
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BPCL to invest Rs5,000 crore in Kochi Refineries
Kochi: Bharat Petroleum Corporation plans to invest Rs5,000 crore at its newly merged Kochi Refineries, which would include setting up a new polypropylene plant, upgrading the quality of the bitumen plant, capacity addition from 7.5 to 10 million tonnes by 2009, and completion of the single buoy mooring facility (SBM) in 2007.

BPCL said Kochi Refineries' current capacity of 7.5 million tonnes is higher than the State's existing demand, estimated at four million tonnes. However, with the merger, BPCL would be able to evacuate products from the refinery to a larger geographical area through an established network. The merged entity is expected to achieve greater efficiency through optimisation of product mix and rationalisation of logistics for product movementfrom the refinery at Kochi. BPCL currently has a 12-million tonnes refinery at Mumbai and a 3-million tonnes subsidiary at Numaligarh.

BPCL has laid 308 km of pipeline from Kochi to Karur via Coimbatore for evacuating about 3.3 million tonnes surplus from Kochi Refineries at an investment of about Rs490 crore. As the equity partner in Petronet LNG BPCL is investing a huge capital for the first LNG import terminal at Kochi, thereby bringing the fuel to Kerala ahead of many other industrialised states.
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Lockheed Martin to tie-up with Indian cos
Bangalore: The US-based defence aircraft manufacturing giant Lockheed Martin is planning to enter into a few initial agreements with Indian companies this year, independently of any aircraft purchase by the Ministry of Defence.

Lockheed Marti plans to hold meetings with nearly 100 companies which it could not meet during the August 21-22 discussions it had in Bangalore along with its global suppliers, it said in a release here.

Lockheed's multi-role F-16 is in the race for the MoD's proposal to buy 126 new generation fighters for the IAF. For this week's meeting, Lockheed brought in 15 of its global vendors to meet potential Indian partners, assess their capabilities and familiarise them of its own collaboration plans.

Fifty nine Indian entities from engineering, IT and manufacturing sectors were involved in over 300 separate meetings.
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L&T to set aside Rs1,200-cr capex for FY07
Mumbai: Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has set aside Rs1,200 crore for capital expenditure in the current financial year.

AM Naik, CMD of L&T, said the company at the annual general meeting (AGM) held in Mumbai that the investment will be used for capacity additions in various projects and plants in Middle East and China, He said the company has set a target of 25 per cent growth, riding on the boom in the economy.

He said large investments in hydrocarbon, power and infrastructure sectors in the Middle East will generate good contracting opportunities.
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GAIL, Petronet, IOC may be in race for Dabhol LNG
Ahmedabad: A number of companies are in the race for acquiring Dabhol LNG, which is expected to be sold off. GAIL India has been looking for an LNG receiving and regasification facility for its ambitious plans to import floating cargoes from the spot market.
Petronet LNG, which is setting up its Kochi terminal in the next two years and increasing capacity of Dahej LNG terminal from the present 5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) to 12.5 mtpa subsequently, has obvious synergy with Dabhol.

Indian Oil Corporation, which wants its own LNG import facility, will also be interested.

The government seems to want Petronet LNG to buy the terminal.
The key aspect for the success of Dabhol LNG is a long-term supply arrangement with one of the suppliers either from the Middle-East or from Australia. Though the company has been looking for long-term LNG supply but there is hardly any LNG available in the open market for long-term contracts.
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Hindustan Motors unveils revival plan
Kolkata: Hindustan Motors plans to infuse Rs100 crore into its automotive industrial complex at Uttarpara in West Bengal to bring it back to profitability.

Hindustan Motors' managing director Ravi Santhanam unveiling a "revival & renewal proposal" that envisages

• Expanding the auto component sector by developing a large modern automotive forgings line as well as its castings and stampings business.
• Sustaining the existing car manufacturing business by introducing new variants of Ambassador cars and upgrading technology, and by,
• Transforming the work practice of the unit to achieve competitiveness in quality cost and delivery.

Set up in 1948 and developed as a fully integrated automotive industrial complex & township, the company's Uttarpara unit currently produces some 4,000 tonne per annum of forgings and 5,000 tonne per annum of castings.
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