Baron now plans low-priced mobile phones
Mumbai: The Baron group is aligning with a Chinese electronics company to bring in a new brand of affordable mobile phones to India. The group had earlier created history of sorts by selling Akai brand TVs under various exchange schemes that enabled lower middle class people to own colour televisions at very affordable prices.

Baron is joining with TCL Electronics Corporation to market mobile telephones at prices of Rs 4,000 to Rs 5,000. At present, mobile phones cost anywhere between Rs 7,000 and Rs 40,000.

Sources in the company said Kabir Mulchandani, Baron's chief executive, is waiting for November 1999, when incoming calls made to mobile phones will become free. Baron is targeting the lower end of the market and college-going students. It may also provide some free airtime with the set.
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Satyam Infoway gets nod for ADR
New Delhi: Satyam Infoway has been given in-principle clearance by the department of economic affairs for its proposed Rs 500-crore American depository receipt issue. The final approval is expected after the company exercises its greenshoe option and the post-ADR foreign equity level is determined. There is a 49 per cent equity cap in the telecom sector. Satyam Infoway has said it plans to increase its foreign equity level from the present 39.29 per cent to 43.98 per cent.

The company had earlier announced that it would issue 4.8 million shares through the ADR route, but later it increased the number to 6.4 million shares.
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Gujarat Gas plans to sell JV
Ahmedabad: The Gujarat Gas Company is disposing of Petroleum Infrastructure, its joint venture with the Bharat Petroleum Corporation. The company had earlier sold its loss-making LPG Infrastructure India to the Reliance group.

Petroleum Infrastructure is a 50:50 joint venture between the two partners with no public shareholding. It was set up to provide LPG supplies to Gujarat Gas's two bottling plants. The joint venture owns a jetty and a 900-tonne LPG storage facility at Okha near Bhavnagar. Gujarat Gas had offered the company to Reliance, but Reliance, with its new refining and port facilities at Jamnagar, was not interested.

Petroleum Infrastructure has been making losses, and its Rs 15 crore equity has been completely wiped off.
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Hindalco plans new aluminium smelting project
Mumbai: Hindalco Industries is to set up an aluminium smelter at Renukoot at an estimated cost of Rs 2,500 crore. The project will be an expansion of its existing plant. The company is planning to acquire technology from VAW Aluminium Technologie of Germany.

The expansion of smelting capacity will involve expansion of the alumina refining capacity, captive power and bauxite mines. Hindalco had earlier proposed a greenfield project, Aditya Aluminium, in Orissa, but that project was shelved because of high project costs and inadequate returns.
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Lucent sets up grant scheme for Indian youth
Mumbai: Lucent Technologies has decided to award grants worth Rs 2.20 crore for youth development programmes in India. The grants will be given through Lucent Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Lucent Technologies.

The company will fund scholarships, vocational training programmes and other initiatives such as education of homeless youth. The foundation has teamed up with the Share and Care Foundation, a US-registered volunteer-operated NRI charity functioning in India, to carry out its activities.
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AceS plans satellite telephony
New Delhi: AceS International, the $800-million satellite phone project of Lockheed Martin, will launch its first satellite in October. The company plans to provide satellite phone services in Asia at an airtime tariff of less than a dollar per minute, much lower than that of Iridium, another major player.

AceS, owned by Lockheed Martin, Global Telecommunications, Pacific Satellite Nusantara of Indonesia, and Philippines Long Distance Corporation, is targeting a subscriber base of about 25,000 in India in the first year of operation. Ericsson has designed the handsets for AceS. The handsets, weighing 205 gm, are the smallest dual mode type available. AceS will follow the national numbering policy for each country.
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Gujarat wants GM plant in state
Ahmedabad: The government of Gujarat state is trying to convince General Motors that it should build its proposed truck-manufacturing base in that state. The company has plans to invest about Rs 1,000 crore in a new plant in India.

General Motors India has a car manufacturing unit at Halol in Gujarat, and the company has submitted a proposal to expand this unit to make its small car Corsa. The company is also interested in setting up its truck manufacturing facility in India.
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Kale Consultants plans acquisitions
Chennai: Kale Consultants is planning acquisition of software companies working in the banking and airline sectors in Australia and the US. "We have looked at about 10 companies and are now talking to about four of them, but are yet to finalise any deals," Narendra Kale, chairman of the company, said. The company is coming out with an initial public offer on 17 September to raise $8.8 million.
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Intel acquires stake in RiteChoice
Chennai: Intel Corporation has picked up an equity stake in RiteChoice Technologies, a city-based software firm specialising in enterprise solutions for stock brokerage houses.

The deal has been concluded by RiteChoice and Intel Pacific, a unit of Intel. Intel Pacific is said to have acquired 25 per cent stake in the company.
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FDC plans to make interferon
Mumbai: FDC, maker of Electral, the oral rehydration product, is planning to develop interferon, an anti-cancer drug, in the country. Interferon is currently being imported into India.

A biotechnology product, interferon has high margins and low volumes. The market for interferon is estimated to be  around Rs 15 crore. A vial of the product costs around Rs 1,000.

FDC has the infrastructure for genetic engineering work and it plans to isolate the interferon gene for use in commercial production.
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Telco redesigning mid-size car
Pune: Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company, which had almost finalised the design for its mid-size car, is learnt to be re-evaluating the design in order to reduce costs.

Sources say the company has to cut costs, as the mid-size car segment does not have much market in India. The car has been designed in-house by the same team which went to the Italian design house for the Indica.
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UB for core competence focus
Bangalore: United Breweries will demerge its businesses and focus on beer in order to increase valuations.

Vijay Mallya, chairman of the company, told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting that the company has been receiving offers from several financial institutions and strategic investors to pick up stake in the beer business. In order to create investor interest, the company has to focus only on one core area, he said and an investor will not be interested in a company, which had interests in real estate and other activities. "We will not diversify and we will focus on out core competence," he added.
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Acer to set up more production units in India
New Delhi: Acer Computer International will expand its manufacturing bases in India. The company has a plant in Bangalore now.

Acer has informed the government that it is evaluating various sites. The plan includes setting up a plant with international class facilities to make Acer Personal Computers, home computers and servers.
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Bata signs up Rani Mukherjee
Calcutta: Bata India has signed on actress Rani Mukherjee to endorse its women's range of footwear.

Sundrops, which Rani Mukherjee will endorse, has hit Bata stores in Delhi. The shoes are in the easy-to-wear range priced at Rs 124.95. The campaign has been planned by Euro RSCG, Calcutta.
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555 variant from ITC
Mumbai: ITC has launched a variant of the international State Express 555 in India. Called SE555 Lights, the  cigarettes are white-tipped and aims at offering the best to the Indian consumer. The cigarette is available at Rs 53 per pack.
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Copper prices hiked
Mumbai: Hindustan Copper, Sterlite Industries and Birla Copper have increased the prices of various copper products for the second half of September.

The prevailing price trend at the London Metal Exchange has encouraged these companies to increase the prices, sources at the Bombay Metal Exchange said.

The prices of wire rods, wire bars and cathodes have been has been increased by Rs 6,000 a tonne.
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Qualcomm to sell mobile phone unit
Los Angeles: Qualcomm is to sell its mobile telephone business by the year-end and then focus entirely on developing its wireless technology business.

The San Diego, California-based company said it will meet or beat Wall Street expectations in the fourth quarter earnings from operations.

Qualcomm is one of the hottest telecom companies after it developed the code division multiple access, CDMA, technology, which is being deployed in new mobile networks.
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Daewoo to meet foreign creditors
Seoul: The Daewoo group said it will meet its foreign creditors to discuss its debts. Domestic creditors have already offered financial aid to the ailing group's flagship unit.

The Korea Economic Daily said Daewoo plans to ask its foreign creditors to suspend calling in loans to Daewoo companies until March 2000. Foreign creditors have 10 per cent share in Daewoo's debt totalling $48 billion and have been demanding that they be given equal rights to the collateral.
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Motorola to buy General Instrument
Schaumburg, Illinois: Motorola says it is buying General Instrument Corporation, a major supplier of television set-top boxes, in a stock deal valued at about $11 billion.

Motorola said the merger would position it as a leader in the converged internet, telecommunications and entertainment services. General Instruments' set-top boxes provide access to high-speed, premium digital service from cable operators.
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BASF to set up vitamin plant in Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur: BASF is setting up a plant in Malaysia to supply food vitamin and mineral premixes for the Asian market. The plant is expected to be completed by middle 2000.
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Boots plans internet project for women
London: Boots Company has sponsored handbag.com, a new woman-friendly free internet joint venture with Hollinger Telegraph New Media. The service, which goes live on 6 October, aims to entice more women to the web offering 18 channels, covering fashion, news, on-line shopping, health and beauty, e-mail and expert advice.

It provides free web access via three million CDs, which will be available in Boots' stores. The service is also available through internet service providers.
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