Debate on post-Parvinder Singh Ranbaxy
New Delhi: Corporate circles are debating the shape of post-Parvinder Singh Ranbaxy, where 37 per cent of the company's shares are held through the late Ranbaxy chairman's family trust. It is likely to be inherited by his sons, Malvinder and Shivinder, who would then become the single largest shareholders in the company.

It is rumoured that Parvinder Singh's father Bhai Mohan Singh, whose relationship with his son were estranged, may play a strategic role in the family trust. Malvinder Singh is working in a relatively junior position in Ranbaxy, while Shivinder Singh is studying.

Parvinder Singh, a staunch advocate of corporate governance and professionals running the company, had nominated D.S. Brar as his successor and managing director of the company.
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AT&T pulling out of India
Mumbai: American telecom major AT&T is understood to be planning to pull out of India. The company has frozen all its future investments here.

It will, however, continue as partner in two joint ventures Birla AT&T and the joint venture with the Tata group and the US-based Lucent Technologies for manufacturing equipment, Business Standard reported.

If AT&T finally pulls out of India, it will be the second telecom company to do so. Swisscom of Switzerland had already pulled out earlier after selling its stake to Sterling Telecom. Swisscom had a joint venture with the Ruias of the Essar group for providing cellular service in Delhi.

AT&T is shifting its base from India to Singapore from where Indian operations will be controlled.
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Wipro enlists Fiat, Fuji Xerox as clients
Bangalore: Wipro Infotech's technology solutions division has signed new customers like Fiat, Fuji Xerox and Fujitsu. Wipro also plans to open a development centre in Japan, like the one it has in the US.

The division is  planning agreements with microprocessor companies to work in the area of embedded operating systems. It had $40 million revenue in 1998-99 and is expecting to reach $64 million by 1999-2000 end.
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Exide to introduce new products
Calcutta: Exide Industries, India's largest battery manufacturer, is expected to launch at least four new products during the current financial year.

Business Standard reported that the new products are being developed as the company's strategy to enter niche market areas by offering value-added products.

The new products will cut across all categories of batteries produced by the company and will not be confined to any particular category, the paper said, quoting company sources.
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ITC to finance ITC Hotels' venture
Calcutta: ITC Ltd is expected to finance the Rs 300-crore Calcutta hotel project of subsidiary ITC Hotels. The funds from the parent will be utilised to commission the hotel all at once. Without funds, ITC Hotels will have to make the project operational in phases.
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ICI to replace auditors
Calcutta: ICI India has decided to replace its current auditors Lovelock & Lewes with BSR & Co of the KPMG group. The company is to seek shareholders' approval for the appointment of the new auditors at the annual general meeting on 22 July.
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Wintech plans net supermarket
Mumbai: Wintech Computers plans to set up a web-based supermarket in the Mumbai.

The electronic supermarket will have 70 cyber outlets to help non-PC-owning consumers place orders on the net. Customers can visit any of the retail outlets, select the products sold by the supermarket from the screen, pay the money and place the order. Goods worth over Rs 1,000 will be delivered at home within 24 hours free of delivery cost. If a person has a PC at home and an internet connection, she need not visit the outlet. 
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Voith acquiring entire stakes in PSL
Mumbai: Voith Bespannungstechnim Gmbh, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the $3 billion JM Voith of Germany, is acquiring 100 per cent control of Porritts & Spencer (Asia), an engineering fabrics company located in Faridabad near New Delhi.

The German company is acquiring a 41 per cent stake through an open offer for 17.92 lakh equity shares of PSL at a price of Rs 80 per share (against a current market price of Rs 67). The balance 59 per cent will be acquired from Porritts & Spencer Ltd of Scapa Group, the UK-based parent company.

The acquisition cost has been fixed at around Rs 21 crore. The $3 billion Voith group is a global player in paper technology and paper machine clothing.

PSL would become a 100 per cent subsidiary of Voith.
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Saba Software plans investments
Mumbai: Saba Software India Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of US-based Saba Software, has said it will invest $8 million in India over the next five years. This will be in addition to the investments that Saba has already made in setting up a software development centre at Mahape near Mumbai.

The Indian arm is a global research and development centre for Saba, a  leading player in the enterprise wide knowledge planning solutions market. 
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BIFR clears plan for India Polyfibres
Calcutta: The Board for Industrial and Financial Restructuring has approved the revival scheme for India Polyfibres. This will shift the company's ownership from RPG Enterprises to the Reliance group.

Reliance Petro-products will step in as the co-promoter and the group will infuse Rs 28.37 crore as fresh equity in India Polyfibres. The company can also bring in Rs 9 crore as equity later.

The BIFR has directed the RPG group to write off 80 per cent of the Rs 46.45 crore paid-up capital of the company. 
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Ascel to offer cheaper satphone rates
New Delhi: ASC Enterprises, the global mobile satellite   phone company promoted by Subhash Chandra, will offer satellite telephone service at rates cheaper than those proposed by competitors. Ascel will charge its subscribers at the rate of Rs 17.60 per minute and business users Rs 19.60 per minute compared with Iridium's charges between $ 2 and 7 per minute.

Ascel had made a presentation to financial institutions. It said corporate users making a high number of long distance and overseas calls will be charged at a concessional rate of Rs 15 per minute for domestic calls and Rs 25 per minute for international calls.

The monthly rentals proposed are Rs 750 while Iridium charges $70 (about Rs 3,000).

The handset, being designed by Lockheed Martin, Ascel's partner, is expected to cost Rs 16,000 while the one developed by Motorola for Iridium costs about Rs 1.95 lakh. 
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M&M to enter hospitality business
Mumbai: Mahindra & Mahindra is planning to expand its presence in the hospitality and entertainment business. The group plans to convert Mahindra Holidays and Resorts into a global timeshare company,

The company is planning to set up resorts in Nepal, Mauritius, Bali, Maldives and Thailand. It has also entered into a three-way joint venture with two of the world's largest entertainment companies, Sega Entertainment and Mitsubishi Corporation, by which it will set up two entertainment arcades in Chennai. Similar arcades are proposed in Mumbai and Delhi too. 
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Marubeni ready to hike stake in BPL Power
New Delhi: Marubeni Corporation is increasing its equity in BPL Power Projects from 26 per cent to 51 per cent.

BPL Power Projects  is executing a 520 MW power project at Ramagundam in Andhra Pradesh.

Marubeni has told the financial institutions that it is willing to increase its equity if the BPL group is not in a position to do so.

The total share capital of the company in the project is Rs 834 crore. Initially, BPL had committed to bring in Rs 525 crore, Marubeni Rs 217 crore and EPDC of Japan Rs 92 crore. The project is expected to cost Rs 2,776 crore.
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Glaxo Wellcome to cut   jobs
London: Glaxo Wellcome is preparing to announce job cuts and a big restructuring in a global initiative to cut costs from its manufacturing base.

The UK drug company believes it can attain a double digit growth rate by closing redundant manufacturing capacity left over after the 1995 merger of Glaxo with Wellcome. There could be substantial job losses in Britain where the company employs 8,000 people in eight factories.
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