document.writeln("

Infosys in Global MAKE Hall of Fame
Bangalore: Infosys Technologies on Monday said it is the first Indian company to be inducted into the Global Most Admired Knowledge Enterprises (MAKE) Hall of Fame. It has also won the Global MAKE award for the third consecutive year, the statement said.

Infosys is included among 22 other global organisations including Dell, General Electric (GE), Hewlett Packward (HP), Accenture, IBM and Microsoft, who have won the award the company said in a statement.

Infosys has been recognised for its organisational learning and for transforming enterprise knowledge into shareholder value.
Back to News Review index page  

Independent directors: Prime Database lists 8,500 professionals
Mumbai: Primary market-monitoring firm, Prime Database, has set up a list of more than 8,500 professionals eligible to be independent directors on the board of listed companies on its web site. Of this, 3,985 professionals have already submitted their detailed profiles.

The details of these professionals are available on its Web site, www.primedirectors.com, which is free of cost for listed companies.

The agency has taken the initiative in response to the grievance of the corporate sector of its inability to find suitable professionals as independent directors under Clause 49 of the listing agreement. All listed companies are required to comply with the listing agreement by December 31, which mandates that independent directors should constitute 50 per cent of their boards.

In a release, Prime Database said the quality of professionals who have submitted their profiles ranges from IIM and IIT graduates, Chartered Accountants and Company Secretaries to Cost Accountants and lawyers. Of the total professionals who have enrolled, 87 per cent have more than 10 years of experience and only 212 professionals currently hold 338 independent directorships.

Some of the professionals are retired and existing chairmen and managing directors of banks, PSUs and private companies.
Back to News Review index page  

Suven makes presentation at annual Neuroscience meet
Mumbai: Suven Life Sciences, engaged in designing, manufacturing and supplying bulk active, drug intermediates and fine chemicals, says it made several data presentations from its portfolio of investigational neuroscience compounds at Neuroscience 2005, in Washington DC, US last week.

Neuroscience 2005, is an annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience (SFN), Suven informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The company presented new data for four promising areas of neuroscience viz. Alzheimer's, Schizophrenia, Parkinson and obesity diseases.

Suven is committed towards development of new treatments for neurological disorders and its discovery research focuses on central nervous system (CNS) disorders.
Back to News Review index page  

Metrochem enters into strategic agreement with Ciba Chemicals
Mumbai: Chemical products company Metrochem Industries, on Monday said that it has entered into a strategic agreement with Ciba Chemicals to manufacture, package and supply textile dyes.

Metrochem's H-acid plant at Umraya in Baroda, which was shut down in July 2005, has been restarted, the company told the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Back to News Review index page  

Alps Industries bags US$2.35mn order from US co.
Mumbai: Alps Industries has received an order worth US$2.35mn from US-based Springs Industries Inc for supplying home furnishing products.

Springs Industries is onward supplier to Walmart, US and its principal activities are manufacturing, marketing and distributing textile and non-textile home furnishing products, Alps Industries informed the National Stock Exchange.
Back to News Review index page  

Coca-Cola India allowed to buy back equity
New Delhi: Coca-Cola India has been allowed to buy back equity that it divested in a bottling company three years ago when the company Hindustan Coca Cola Holdings divested 49 per cent share in its bottling subsidiary, Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages to strategic financial investors, employees and bottlers.

This was as per the conditions it had agreed to in 1997 when it applied to set up business in India.

Now, the Foreign Investment Promotion Board has given it's permission to the company to buy back this stake. The decision is based on the logic that other companies which entered India after Coke, did not have to divest in favour of Indian companies.
Back to News Review index page  

NLC, TNEB float joint venture
Mumbai: Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) and the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) have decided to float a joint venture company for setting up a 1,000 MW coal-based thermal power project at Tuticorin at an estimated cost of Rs4,500 crore. The joint venture company will be named NLC Tamil Nadu Power Ltd, NLC informed the Bombay Stock Exchange today.

The project funded through equity and loans would be 89 per cent held by NLC and the rest would be with TNEB.

NLC said the project would be located adjacent to the existing Tuticorin thermal power station of the TNEB and the required land will be allotted by Tuticorin Port Trust to the company on long-term lease basis. The project envisages use of about five million tonnes of coal per annum from Orissa's Talcher Coalfields and has a provision to use imported coal for blending, the company said.

NLC said the power plant would consist of two units of 50 MW each and the energy generated from the new plant would be supplied to Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Union Territory of Pondicherry.

The state of Tamil Nadu would be the major beneficiary from the project.
Back to News Review index page  

Apollo Hospitals to invest Rs.350 crore to add beds and facilities
New Delhi: Chennai-based Apollo hospitals group plans to invest Rs350 crore to add 1800 beds in the next 18 months through acquisitions and creation of Greenfield facilities.

The hospital would add 800 beds through management of hospitals and another 1000 beds from ownership in the next 18 months said Suneeta Reddy, Apollo Hospitals group director finance on the sidelines of India Health Summit organised by CII and Indian healthcare foundation.

She said the expansion would be through acquisitions and creation of Greenfield facilities.
Back to News Review index page  

Aurobindo's Cephalexin gets U.S. FDA nod
Hyderabad: Aurobindo Pharma has announced that the U.S. Food Drug Administration (US FDA) has approved its Cephalexin capsules USP 250 mg & 500 mg.

The company has obtained the first product approval from the dedicated Cephalosporin facility (Unit VI, situated in Medak District, Andhra Pradesh, India) where it has set up three multi module formulation manufacturing facilities.

The market size for the Cephalexin capsules USP 250 mg and 500 mg, is around US$80mn.
Back to News Review index page  

Aviation sector to see huge investments
New Delhi: Investment to the order of US$50bn is expected in the rapidly-growing aviation sector over the next 10 years in India, as the country upgrades aging aircraft fleets and modernises airports, according to the Union civil aviation minister, Praful Patel.

He added that by 2012, the aviation sector in India would need investments of more than US$30bn, or US$50bn in 10 years.

Over the next seven years, the investment in renovating Delhi and Mumbai airports would be about US$10 bn. Government-owned Air India and Indian Airlines will spend US$10bn on new aircraft, and private airlines will spend a similar amount on their fleets.

Air India is buying 68 Boeing aircraft for US$8bn, pending Indian cabinet approval expected this month.
Back to News Review index page  

Nagarjuna Construction awarded contract
Hyderabad: Nagarjuna Construction Company along with its joint venture partners has bagged the elevated highway construction project of Bangalore-Hosur Section of NH-7 from Silk Board Junction to Electronic City Junction in Bangalore city on built, operate and transfer (BOT) basis.

The project has a concession period of 20 years including construction period of 24 months.

The project value is approx. Rs765 crore and the company's share in the project will be Rs255 crore.
Back to News Review index page  

BHEL commissions 150 MW gas turbine generator in Libya
New Delhi: Bharat Heavy Electricals has commissioned a 150 MW gas turbine generator in Libya. The Indian state run company commissioned the unit on turnkey basis for the Genela Electricity company of Libya at its upcoming 600 MW (4x150 MW) gas turbine-based Western Mountain power project.

According to a press release by the company, BHEL is in the process of installing three more units of similar rating at the Western Mountain power project, which when it becomes fully operational by June 2006, will be the largest power plant set up by BHEL overseas.

The gas turbine has been exported against an order for four such machines - the single largest overseas order received by any capital goods manufacturer in India.

BHEL is also imparting training to Libyan engineers on the design, operation and maintenance of gas-based power stations.
Back to News Review index page  

Kingfisher Airlines in US$2bn aircraft acquisition deal
Dubai: Kingfisher Airlines on Monday ordered 30 A-319 and A-320 aircraft from European manufacturer Airbus Industrie worth US$1.9bn.

The private airlines also signed another large deal for 20 turbo-prop aircraft for US$350 mn from French company ATR yesterday on the opening day of the 'Dubai 2005' Airshow.

The ATR 72-500 aircraft will begin arriving from March 2006 and the last of the 20 planes would be handed over to Kingfisher Airlines by 2008.

Kingfisher has the option of ordering another 15 aircraft.
Back to News Review index page  

Weston Electronics' Uttaranchal plants commissioned
New Delhi: Weston Electronics on Monday commissioned two new plants at Dehradun. The plants manufacturing colour televisions, DVDs and air conditioners have been set up with an investment of Rs4.5 crore.

The plants have three lines of production. The first one has a capacity to manufacture 50,000 units of colour television while the second one can make one lakh units of another for DVDs per month.

The third line is for manufacturing air-conditioners with a capacity of 25,000 units a month. Weston had recently introduced low priced flat colour television starting from Rs3,990 for 14 inch and Rs12,790 for 29-inch sets.
Back to News Review index page