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Ranbaxy's
Pravastatin launched in US
New Delhi: Ranbaxy has launched the
80 mg generic version of the cholesterol-lowering drug Pravachol (Pravastatin)
with a six-month market exclusivity in the US market. Ranbaxy
Pharmaceuticals Inc said the annual sales for the drug for 2006 accounted for
$209 million. Officials said the company's 180 month exclusivity advantage had
been expected for a while, however, issues at its Paonta Sahib unit, which still
awaits USFDA clearance, had delayed its launch. industry experts said the 180
day exclusivity is first of all a great psychological boost, and a legal landmark
and could add as much as $50-60 million (or between Rs200-250 crore) to the company's
topline. Ranbaxy
plans to manufacture the drug at its New Jersey facility, Ohm Laboratories.
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to News Review index page Bajaj
plans four-wheeler in Rs2-5 lakh range
New Delhi: Bajaj Auto, India's
second-largest two-wheeler maker says it will showcase its first four-wheeler
in January 2008 at the annual auto show. The vehicle is expected to be priced
between Rs 2 lakh and Rs5 lakh. Rajiv
Bajaj managing director, Bajaj Auto described the offering as a "four-wheel
passenger vehicle", rather than a small car and said it would not be within
the Tatas Motors small car price tag of Rs1 lakh. He said if the response to the
vehicle was good the car would begun to be commercially produced in three years.
To
begin with Bajaj said the company is working on the commercial launch of a four-wheel
goods carrier by 2009. The
company has earmarked Rs750 crore for a four-wheel production plant to manufacture
40,000 to 50,000 vehicles annually.
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unleashes new corporate identity
Mumbai: Hindustan Lever Ltd has
formally introduced a new corporate logo and changed its name to Hindustan Unilever
Ltd. The Indian company has adapted its parent company's universal global logo
that has 25 different icons, in order to leverage the global scale of the company
and at the same time keep its Indian identity intact with its new name. Unilever
has decided to use its name as a suffix for its Indian subsidiary unlike the rest
of its subsidiaries where it prefixes its name with the name of the country. According
to HLL, retaining the name "Hindustan" as the first word in its name
reflects the company's continued commitment to local economy, consumers, partners
and employees. The new logo is symbolic of the company's mission of `adding vitality
to life'. It comprises 25 different icons representing the organisation, its brands
and the idea of vitality. Each of the icons, which make up the U, represent broadly
product categories the group is in - for example, a tiny spoon in the logo is
a symbol of nutrition, taste and cooking, while a chilli indicates spice and flavours
and lips represent beauty, looking good and great taste. The
shareholders had earlier approved the proposal for change of name at the company's
74th Annual General Meeting on May 18.
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consortium bags RINL order
New Delhi: Bharat Heavy Electricals
(BHEL) and the Germany-based MAN Turbo have received a Rs 106-crore order from
Rashtriya Ispat Nigam (RINL) for the supply and installation of a turbo blower
package. The consortium would install the turbo blower package at RINL's Vizag
steel plant in the next 28 months, BHEL said in a release here today. BHEL's
scope of work in the project includes manufacture and supply of a 45-MW steam
turbine with associated auxiliaries in addition to site erection and commissioning
of the complete turbo blower package, it said. The German partner would supply
the turbo-blower. BHEL's units at Hyderabad and Bangalore would supply the equipments
for the project, while the erection and commissioning activities would be undertaken
by other facilities in the southern region.
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may divest Britannia stake to outsider
Bangalore: Groupe Danone,
which holds an equal stake in Indian biscuit major Britannia Industries, says
it will sell its 25.5 pc stake in the company only at the "right price",
and could consider divesting it to an outside investor if a consensus is not reached
with joint venture partner Wadia Group. Rumours
have been doing the rounds recently that another prominent Indian corporate house
was looking at buying into Britannia, even though the Wadias are against inducting
a new investor with aggressive plans. Last
week, Danone indicated plans to exit Britannia as part of a well-thought-out disengagement
with the Wadia Group in order to develop an independent India strategy. Sources
said Danone will first offer shares to the Wadias, given their over-a decade-old
ties, but will sell its interest "only at a certain price" and could
consider offloading to an outside investor depending on the progress of its talks
with the Wadias. Both
the Wadias and its French partner declined to comment on specific queries regarding
shareholder agreement on share transaction and the right of first refusal. The
Wadias and Danone equally own 51 per cent stake in Britannia through holding company
Associated Biscuits International Holding (ABIH). Danone has refused to indicate
the price on its stake, which is expected to come up in course of its future discussions
with the Wadias. The
French major says it is willing to vacate the biscuit space and sign a no-compete
clause with the Wadias if it exits Britannia.
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give NOC to DaimlerChrysler
New Delhi: Tata Motors has given a
no objection certificate to the world's largest commercial vehicle (CV) player
DaimlerChrysler to manufacture CVs in India. With this the German company would
be able to roll out Mercedes-Benz branded CVs in India also intensify competition
at the top end of the CV and luxury bus market in the country. DaimlerChrysler
India holds 6.64 per cent in Tata Motors and according to government guidelines
it required a no objection certificate from the Indian company before it could
enter the CV segment as a competitor. DaimlerChrysler
currently imports Mercedes-Benz trucks. But with the new proposal, it would start
producing CVs locally. DaimlerChrysler would initially make the vehicles at its
manufacturing facility at Pune. Production would later be shifted to its new plant
at Chakan, near Pune. DaimlerChrysler has acquired 100 acre at Chakan Industrial
Park. Daimler
is also expected to get into the production of luxury coaches and buses. In addition,
Daimler would develop bus bodies at its India unit. Tatas
entered into collaboration with Daimler Benz in 1954 for medium CVs. When Daimler
started its manufacturing activity for Mercedes-Benz cars in India in 1994, it
began as a 51:49 joint venture between Daimler and Tata Motors, then known as
Telco. DaimlerChrysler
is the world's No. 1 CV company with about 15 per cent and 17 per cent global
market share of the medium-heavy duty truck and bus segment, respectively. In
2006, it sold over 536,000 trucks and 36,000 buses.
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ties up with Excel Home Videos for India
New Delhi: Leading US
film production and distribution company Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM), has tied up
with Excel Home Videos which controls the international video category in India
with 40 per cent market share, and also has the largest movie catalogue in the
country and represents international studios like Walt Disney Home Entertainment,
Twentieth Century Fox, Merchant Ivory Production, HIT, Shringar Films among others. MGM
has a collection of movies like Pink Panther Series, James Bond Series, Rocky
Series, Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry Series and World War Classics among others. MGM
officials said that despite the rampant piracy and the entry of new players, there
has been a steady and positive growth in entertainment sector in India. The market
has grown at a rate of 25 per cent in the last 3 years.
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acquires Brazilian firm Nikkho for $26mn
Mumbai: Zydus Cadila will
acquire 100 per cent stake in Quimica e Farmaceutica Nikkho do Brasil Ltda (Nikkho),
a mid-sized, privately held company in Brazil for about $26 million. Nikkho
posted sales of $26 million in calendar year 2006, and the consideration paid
represents a sales multiple of around 1. The
acquisition will be done through Zydus Healthcare Brasil, the step-down, wholly-owned
subsidiary of the company. An agreement signed today will come into effect after
the satisfaction of closing conditions. According
to a release from Zydus Cadila the Rio de Janeiro based Nikkho is a growing and
profitable pharmaceutical Company with a manufacturing facility. In existence
for over four decades, the company caters exclusively to the Brazilian prescription
drugs market.
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announces JV for risk management solutions
Mumbai: Hexaware Tech
has entered into a joint venture agreement with Pemtrad International to launch
Risk Technology International (RiskTech). The
new entity will focus exclusively on offering a comprehensive suite of technology-intensive
solutions in the domain of enterprise risk and compliance management, primarily
for financial institutions worldwide. RiskTech will have offices in UK, USA and
India. RiskTech
will offer a suite of technology-focused solutions for implementation and support
in the areas of value-based enterprise risk management (ERM) including Basel II
and Pillar III based services, regulatory compliance, and treasury risk management.
In addition, it will also provide MIFID related services. Hexaware, with an investment
of 85 per cent in the JV, will be able to strengthen and leverage its scope of
operations by offering diversified solutions in the field of enterprise risk and
treasury risk management applications, the release said. The
global market for risk technology is estimated at $ 5.5bn (external expenditure
only) in 2007.
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net profit dips 13 per cent in Q4 due to subsidy burden
New Delhi:
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation's (ONGC) fourth quarter (quarter ended March
31, 2007) profit dipped by 13 per cent to Rs 2,681.64 crore mainly due to subsidy
payouts to state-run refiners. The company's net profit in the corresponding quarter
in 2006 stood at Rs 3,085.89 crore. However, the company's total income saw an
increase of 16.35 per cent in the fourth quarter at Rs 14,575.92 crore (Rs 12,528.23
crore). For
the fiscal ended March 31, 2007 the company saw a 8 per cent increase in net profit
to Rs 15,643 crore (Rs 14,431 crore) notwithstanding the highest-ever subsidy
payment of Rs 17,024 crore (up from Rs 11,957 crore). The impact of subsidy on
net profit was Rs 10,333 crore. The
company's turnover for the 2006-07 fiscal stood at Rs 56,904 crore (Rs 48,201
crore). Officials said ONGC's gross realisation in crude sales stood at $66 a
barrel, but company had to shell out a discount of $22 a barrel to refiners toward
subsidised fuel sales reducing the net realisation for ONGC in 2006-07 to $44
per barrel. The
company board has recommended a dividend of 310 per cent on expanded capital after
bonus issue of 1:2.
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