Dabur's UAE plant to commence production by December

Dabur India is likely to begin production of personal care products at its new plant in Ras-al- Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates, by December 2008. The production line will cater to the market in West Asia. Dabur currently owns seven plants, overseas, and eight plants in India. Previous to the new plant, it had launched a similar unit in Nigeria, in November 2007, where personal and oral care articles, including toothpastes are manufactured for local demand.

Bahrain to have two new Taj Hotels

Taj Hotels a subsidiary of Indian Hotels Company plans to open two five-star hotels in Bahrain, through a JV with a major real estate developer. The hotels to come up at Mahooz and Al Jafoor in Bahrain, will be managed by Taj under a management contract, and will carry the brand name ‘Taj Exotica’. Indian Hotels Company will not invest in capital funds; however the real estate owner will bear furnishing cost. In addition to the two proposed projects, Taj operates a five-star hotel - Taj Palace Hotel, in Dubai.

Tata's Tanzania project on hold

Tata Chemicals has decided to halt its plans of setting up a $500 million soda ash manufacturing plant, in JV with the Tanzanian government, due to opposition from local environmentalists. The plant has been put on hold since 2007 and the government has asked the Natron Resources to produce an environment management plan and consider other sites for soda ash extraction. Environmentalists in Tanzania argued that the proposed plant may affect population of flamingo birds and the mineral balance of the Lake Natron. It is learnt that Tata Chemicals will wait for a clearance from the Tanzanian government once the situation is resolved.

Bajaj plans lighting unit in Saudi Arabia

Bajaj Electricals plans to set up a factory in Saudi Arabia to support its engineering and projects business. It is examining the feasibility of setting up a factory to cater to large demand for its products in the Middle East. It will provide equipment for turnkey services in electricals and illumination engineering, at the proposed factory.

ONGC-Mittal plan $4 bn refinery in Nigeria

ONGC-Mittal Energy (OMEL), a JV between Oil & Natural Corporation of India and L N Mittal Group, has proposed investing around $4 billion in setting up a 9 million tpa refinery in Nigeria. UKbased consultant Nexant has been appointed to undertake a feasibility study and submit its final report by end-2008. OMEL and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation have constituted a steering committee to work out project details.

OVL negotiates for Iranian gas block

ONGC Videsh is negotiating with the Iranian government to explore an oil block near the Caspian Sea in northern Iran. It is learnt that the Chinese company, Sinopec, is also in the race for the block. OVL, along with Oil India and Indian Oil Corporation discovered oil and gas in the offshore Farsi block in Iran. The company is also seeking other oil and gas blocks in Iran, particularly in the South Pars field.

SJVNL seeks CCEA nod for overseas venture

Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVNL) is likely to approach the CCEA for approvals on its proposed 402 MW Arun-III hydel power project in Nepal. The venture will be implemented by a separate subsidiary to be floated with the consent of the CCEA. The company bagged the contract in early- 2008, by agreeing to offer 21.9 per cent (about 88 MW) free electricity. It has also agreed to give as guarantee, Rs.5 lakh per unit, for obtaining a power generating license and Rs.1 lakh per unit for a survey license. The company will have to develop the project within five years, operate it for 30 years on BOT basis and lay transmission lines for evacuating power from the project.

Bharti to commence operations in Sri Lanka by December

Bharti Airtel has almost resolved its interconnection issues with local telecom firms in Sri Lanka, and expects to roll out services in the country by December 2008. The company faced hurdles as the country's incumbent operators did not agree for it to acquire inter-connection from the local operators. Bharti Airtel Lanka, a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, had announced plans to launch 2G and 3G services in Sri Lanka under the Airtel brand, for which, a $150 million deal was signed with China's Huawei Technologies for setting up a mobile phone network in the country.

Tata Steel to acquire stake in New Millennium

Tata Steel Global Minerals Holdings Pte, Singapore, a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of Tata Steel, will acquire 19.9 per cent in New Millennium Capital Corporation, Canada (NML) for $22 million (Rs.106 crore). The stake will include common shares of the expanded capital base of NML. The company also has an option to acquire 80 per cent equity in NML's Direct Shipping Ore project (DSO Project), in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Province of Quebec.

Ind-Oil Overseas scout for oil assets in CIS, African countries

Ind-Oil Overseas - a JV floated by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Oil India (OIL) to acquire oil and gas acreages overseas, is scouting for opportunities in Commonwealth of Independent States and African countries. Deloitte has been appointed to establish the suitable fiscal mechanism. The 50:50 SPV was set up in early- 2008 in Mauritius, and presently has a minimal capital base which will be increased according to requirements. The SPV does not restrict the two entities from individually adopting a consortium approach when required. OIL can also consider roping in other partners in assets that do not interest IOC.

Kirloskar expands operations to Thailand

Kirloskar Brothers has formed a wholly-owned subsidiary Kirloskar Brothers (Thailand) (KBTL), in Thailand. The company will focus on Asia- Pacific markets and will control the Group's operations in Laos, Cambodia, Singapore and Indonesia offices. Kirloskar Brothers had received the necessary approval from the Thai regulators in September 2008 for its subsidiary, which currently has an authorised capital of 10 million baht (Rs.14.20 crore).

Tata acquires stake in Norway's Miljo Grenland Innovasjon

Tata Motors' subsidiary Tata Motors European Technical Center Plc, has acquired 50.3 per cent majority stake in Norway's Miljo Grenland Innovasjon. Miljo will produce electric vehicles based on Tata Motors' products, besides manufacturing state-of-the-art super polymer lithium ion batteries and developing related technologies. The first vehicle will be the electric version of Indica and is scheduled to launch in Europe by 2009. The car - Indica EV - will be capable of seating four people with a predicted range of up to 200 km and acceleration of 0-60 kmph in less than 10 seconds.