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Editorial MB

April 20076MB

EDIT

ORIAL

couple of issues back, our editorial focused on the profound impact ofglobal capitalism and eco design for sustainable communities, which areset on a collision path, resulting in conflict and bloodshed. The terror

unleashed on the Nandigram community and subsequent bloodshed, andunofficial reports of gang rape, proves the point. Should developmental projectsbe allowed to sharpen the divides between the haves and the have-nots, betweenthe rural and urban, between the privileged and less privileged?

If we look at human history, we can see a powerful relationship between theworldviews that people hold and the kind of society they construct, that is betweenthe way people believe their world is and the things they do to one another. Allthrough history, we are now aware; people thought the way they saw the world wasthe way the world really was - be it religious, political, or scientific - which resultedin wars, hot or cold.

The shift from the Paleolithic view of world (co-operative) that treated nature as thegreat Mother Goddess to the Hebrew-Christian world view (dominant) of a

patriarchal god who created the world for man, and to the mechanical world view(exploitative) in the golden age of science that treated the entire universe asmechanical have had great impact the way societies / communities / nationsresponded to a particular challenge.

The theory of evolution through natural selection of the fittest in a greatcompetition for limited resources was so easily adopted by the industrialists ofDarwin's period. And it has been used as a shield to cover the cruelty in the humanworld - the exploitation of resources and labour by the rich was justified on thegrounds that it was natural! The focus was not on cooperation, but on competitioncontrary to the evolutionary theories brought out by the Russian scientists thatargued that cooperation in nature produced more fit natural creatures than didcompetition. And what an irony, the left government of Bengal that should have

protected the agricultural land, and the communities' right to their livelihood,subscribe to such a world view, and become an oppressor.

It was heartening to note that even the present budget has given more impetus toagriculture, underlining the importance of being 'inclusive'. Maybe it is better toremember what Toffler said: We stop looking at every ideas in terms of whether itcomes from the left or the right and see instead whether it takes us forward orbackward. And the best way to see is to look at living systems and how they functionwhen healthy.To sum it up, as Elisabet Sahtouris, an evolution biologist puts it,The sooner we recognize ourselves as being in transition from exploitative anddivisive practices on all fronts to a united and harmonious living system, and thesooner we recognize that there are natural models to guide us, the sooner will we

complete our healthy evolution by our own choice and efforts.The process of development is irreversible, and we need more industry to come upto further the process. The point is any developmental project has to be inclusive,and should, instead of sharpening the divide as has been the case earlier, bridgethe divides, that can act as catalyst to our slow march towards sustainability.

Agith G. Antony

Editor-in-Chief

[email protected]

A


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News & Events MB

April 200710MB

DIAL partner Malaysia Airports Wins

World's Best Airport Award

Malaysia Airports, a partner in Delhi

International Airport (P) Limited (DIAL)and GMR Hyderabad InternationalAirport Limited (GHIAL) has won theWorld's Best Airport Award in the 15-25million passengers per annum categoryby the Airport Council International'sAirport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards2006. It was given this award forMalaysia's flagship airport, the KualaLumpur International Airport (KLIA).

DIAL is the joint venture companyled by GMR Group formed tomodernize and restructure theIndira Gandhi International Airport,Delhi and GHIAL is a GMR led jointventure developing the newHyderabad International Airport.San Diego Airport in the US andZurich Airport in Switzerland wereplaced second and third in thecategory at the award presentationceremony, which was held in Dubai

in conjunction with the two-day AirportCouncil International (ACI), AirportBusiness and Trinity Forum. KLIAalso maintained its third place inboth the Best Airport Worldwide andBest Airport in Asia/Pacific categories,behind Incheon Airport, Korea, andHong Kong's Chek Lap Kok Airportwhile Singapore's Changi Airportwas fourth.

Construction Industry Development

Council (CIDC) in pursuance ofGovernment policy for national disaster

mitigation is establishing a NationalNetwork of Retrofitting Clinics in all the

districts of the country falling inearthquake Zones III, IV and V. In the

CID C to Set U p 6

Retrofitting Clinics

first phase CIDC is setting up 6 suchclinics with the initial expense of

Rs. 6 Crores. State Governmentsof Rajasthan, Haryana and Madhya

Pradesh have joined hands withCIDC in setting up these clinics in their

respective states. Several academicinstitutions have already agreed to

be partners in this effort and beingdesignated as 'Identified and

Accredited Centers' of CIDC.

Retrofitting clinics enable owners ofbuildings get health and structuralstrength assessed for their houses or

buildings. Health of existing housing andbuildings are a matter of concern for the

State and Central Government, as Indiais one of the most disaster prone

country when it comes to natural

disasters like earthquake, cyclones,floods, landslides etc. Recognizing the

Reliance Industries Ltd has signedcontracts worth $4.5 billion to develop

its gas fields off India's southeast coast.The spending will be part of $5.2 bn of

investment the company plans for thearea, according to RIL's president for oil

and gas PMS Prasad. India's currentgas supplies of 85 million cubic meters

a day, including imported liquefiednatural gas, falls short of the potential

demand of 170mn cubic meters,

according to estimates by the OilMinistry. Gas consumption may rise to400 million cubic meters a day by 2025

if the economy grows at the projectedrate of 7 8 % a year. RIL had said last

year that the gas field off the country'seast coast will produce twice the

quantity previously estimated. The KGDWN 98/3 field, discovered in 2002, will

produce 80mn cubic meters a day,compared with the initial estimate of 40

million cubic meters, the company said.

R IL Signs $4.5 bn D eal

for Gas Fields

high vulnerability profile of the country,Government of India has come up

with the Disaster Management Act, 2005and set up the National Disaster

Management Authority, under thechairmanship of Hon'ble Prime

Minister. According to a study doneby Sh.T N Gupta, Former Executive

Director, Building Material TechnologyPromotion Council (BMTPC) and

Sr. Advisor to CIDC, Nearly 80 percent

of our housing stocks which lie innon-engineered category are highlyvulnerable to natural hazards like

earthquakes, cyclone etc, besidesa large stock of buildings which have

become aged and lie in disaster proneregions. Large stocks of ageing

buildings in our urban and rural

settlements add another dimensionto the vulnerability profile.


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Mum bai's 2nd Airport to C ost R s. 9,000 Crore

The cost of Mumbai's secondinternational airport at Panvel, whichwill be fully operational by 2009, is tocost Rs. 9,000 crore. The airport islikely to get Union Cabinet approvalshortly, according to Mr Sanjay Ubale,Secretary, Special Projects,Government of Maharashtra.CIDCO, the city's planning agency

for Navi Mumbai has already acquired90 per cent of the land required for theairport. Soon after Cabinet approval,and after environment impactassessment which is being doneby IIT Bombay, tenders would beissued for the project, and theairport would be fully operational by

2009, according to sources. A specialpurpose vehicle is being establishedfor the project. The MaharashtraGovernment and the Airports Authorityof India will hold 13 per cent stakeeach in the SPV, while the privatedeveloper will hold 74 per cent.The estimated cost of the airportis expected to be Rs.9,000 crore.

News & Events MB

April 200712MB

C Congratulations

Dr. S.K.Manjrekar, a well-knownmaterial scientist from India, has been

recently given Board Committeeappointment on International

Committee of ACI for a 3 year term.

The mission of this committee is todevelop and coordinate ways andmeans to promote communication

and co-operation between ACI andinternational chapters, International

Partners, and organizations andinstitutions beyond the U.S. and

Canada that share common interestswith ACI. The International Committee

is authorized to approve the formationof international chapters and the

establishment of their boundaries,

to provide a forum for InternationalPartners, and to provide input on

international issues and relations tothe Board of Direction as appropriate.

Dr. Manjrekar also happens to be oneof the three Indians to be a Fellow

of the American Concrete Institute,USA since 1999 in recognition for his

outstanding contributions to the ACIand to Concrete Technology.

He has already been bestowed uponwith International Chapter Activities

Award at the ACI spring Conventionat Vancouver, Canada in 2003.

This was due to his dedicated service

to the ACI India Chapter and years ofservice to the concrete industry.He is a member of ACI International

committee 364 and on certification viz.'IC-Cert'. The mission of this committee

is to develop and report information andmaintain standards for rehabilitation,

renovation and preservation of concreteand masonry structures.He is the

President of India Chapter of ACIand Chairman and Managing Director

of M/s Sunanda Speciality Coatings

Pvt. Ltd, Mumbai, a firm that specializesin manufacturing state of the art

construction chemicals.

Reliance Energy (REL) has recently

bagged a contract under National

Highways Development Project phase

IIIA for developing the Namakklal Karur

highway - a stretch of 80 km in Tamil

Nadu for Rs 516 crore. According to

the sources a Special Purpose Vehiclewill be floated by REL to execute the

project which includes the high traffic

density corridor from the Trichy Karur

project and is contiguous to the

Namakklal Karur project on NH 7,

which is already being developed

by REL. As per the sources REL

has already received the letter of

acceptance from the National Highways

Authority of India and will be initiating

work on the project at the earliest.

In 2006, REL had won contracts for

two road projects in Tamil Nadu and

invested around Rs 750 crore.

The first project was a 34 km stretch

from Namakkal to Karrur, with another

10 km for maintenance, and the

second, a stretch of 54km from

Dindigual to Samaynallur.

Reliance Energy toDevelop N amakklal

Karur h ighway


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News & Events MB

April 200714MB

Ind ia, Japan to I ink Comprehensive Economic Pact

Work Begins to Facilitate

Aircrafts Movement

at Delhi Airport

Mr. Katsuhito Asano, Senior ViceMinister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,Japan mentioned that later this month,the first strategic dialogue on theEconomic Partnership Agreement(EPA) at the foreign minister level willbe held in Japan. The Japan-IndiaEPA should serve as a model of ahigh quality economic partnershiptowards 'open regionalism' in Asia,he said, expressing the hope that Indiawill take bold steps to this end. Japan isa major donor to SAARC countries andconsidering the regional dynamism in

South Asia, the two countries might beable to establish new, more efficientmethods to utilize this assistance forregional projects, said Mr. Asano.The main hurdles facing Japaneseinvestment in India were inadequateinfrastructure, complicated legaland taxation system and insufficient

rules and regulations for interstatetransactions, said Mr Mikio Sasaki,Chairman, Mitsubishi Corporation.These challenges could be met bythe India - Japan EPA (EconomicPartnership Agreement), for whichnegotiations had already been initiated,government initiatives through ajudicious mix of grant aid, Yen creditloan and technical assistance, andIndia - Japan Strategic GlobalPartnership, he suggested.

The Japan International CooperationAgency (JICA) would continue to

support India in the four prioritysectors of Infrastructure, Environment,Social Development and HumanResource Development, as agreedupon by the Prime Ministers of bothcountries in their joint statement lastDecember, said Dr Sadako Ogata,President, JICA.

In an effort to enhance passengercomfort and to ensure more efficientaircraft operations, Delhi InternationalAirport Pvt. Ltd. (DIAL) is carrying outwork involving two new taxiwaysU and V. This will facilitate fasterrunway clearance from Runway 10 sidetowards the international terminal.The Runway occupancy time will be

reduced with increase in its capacity.Since, the holding time for aircraftawaiting clearance to land at DelhiAirport would reduce further; thepassengers and airlines will bebenefited. The construction workwould require the closure of a portionof taxiway P for aircraft movementsbetween 0800hrs to 2200hrs (non-peakhours) for a period of approximately two

months starting March 16, 2007.The proposed alternate taxiing route

through the domestic apron for aircraftfrom International Terminal (Terminal 2)towards runway 28/27 may lead to anadditional taxiing time of a few minutes.However, the taxiway P would be madeavailable everyday during the peakhours of international traffic, i.e. from2200 hrs to 0800 hrs.

Ispat Industries has recently signed amemorandum of understanding (MoU)with the Jharkhand government forsetting up an integrated steel plant atManoharpur in West Singhbhum districtwith an estimated cost of Rs 6,750crore. The initial production will be 2.8million tonne, which will later be scaledup to five million tonne in phases. TheMoU was signed between Vinod Mittal,

I spat signs MoU

for Integrated Steel Plant managing director, Ispat Industries andK K Khandelwal, secretary department

of industries in Ranchi. This is thethird major investment plan announcedby Ispat in the recent past. Earlier Ispatsigned an MoU with the Chhattisgarhgovernment for setting up a 600megawatt power project at an estimatedinvestment of Rs 2,500 crore apartfrom an MoU with the Maharashtrafor capacity expansion of its integratedsteel plant at Dolvi.

A Comprehensive EconomicPartnership Agreement (CEPA)between Japan and India is underconstructive discussion and Japanhas committed that a special economicrelationship will be clinched within one

year, said Mr. Ashwani Kumar, Ministerof State for Industry, Ministry ofCommerce and Industry at theSymposium on 'Japan-IndiaStrategic Partnership in the eraof Asian Regional Integration',organized by the Confederationof Indian Industry (CII), recently.


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News & Events MB

April 200718MB

Anil Kumar Sardana Appointed

Execut ive Directo r of Tata Power

Pavement Engineering

with Geosynt hetics

The Tata Power Company has

appointed Anil K Sardana asExecutive Director with effectfrom March 1, 2007. Prior to thisassignment, Sardana was theManaging Director of North DelhiPower Limited (NDPL), an associatecompany of Tata Power for powerdistribution in New Delhi. Sardanawill be responsible for strategy andbusiness development function at TataPower. In addition to transformingNDPL to deliver an improved

performance in substantive ways,

Sardana has demonstrated a trackrecord of delivery and senior levelinterface. He has received the Asian &South Pacific Utilities AssociatedCEO of the Year Award 2005 andAsian Power CEO of the year 2006award announced by the Asian PowerJournal, Singapore. An electricalengineer with 27 years of professionalexperience in the power industry,Sardana has previously worked withNTPC and BSES.

A Short term Course on PavementEngineering with Geosynthetics will

be organized under the aegis of FITT,IIT Delhi. The course will provide a

comprehensive idea of all the relatedusers of use of geosynthetics in

pavement structure and for drainages.The objectives of the course primarily

targeted for engineering collegeteachers and highway engineers are:

Familiarise with uses of modernpavement materials and the design

methodology & Testing, Ascertainthe type of design method required,

Use the design methods,Characterization of geosyntetic materials,

Using Geosynthetic in pavements etcPavement construction techniques.

CI DC Joins H ands with

IGL for Worker's Training

launch of these training programmesat other CIDC Centers on agreed terms.The MoU was signed in Delhi bySh. P.R.Swarup, Director General

CIDC and Sh. Sanjay Bahl, FinanceDirector, IGL. The MoU, provides IGLaccreditation under CIDC-HRD schemefor conducting construction workerstraining, testing and certificationprogrammes for their existing trainingcenters. This agreement will help usto achieve our goal to train each andevery construction worker for theirskill enhancement and ensuringhigher construction quality. It is further

extension of our work in western partof the country, Said CIDC DirectorGeneral Sh P.R.Swarup.

According to Sanjay Bahl, FinanceDirector, IGL Our company'sphilosophy is to upgrade the skills ofconstruction workers in the area of dryconstruction techniques towards falseceiling, partition / walls, cladding inbuilding interiors for meeting specificstandards towards fire safety, soundinsulation and use of green products /

systems in order to improve the qualityof building construction, that is why weare here. At present, we are running ourprogramme at Wada, near Mumbai andwe wish to run this programme alongwith CIDC in other parts of the country."All successful certified constructionworkers get 'Skilled ConstructionWorkers' Certificates awarded by CIDC(jointly promoted by the PlanningCommission and Indian Construction

Industry). CIDC is actively engaged inskill upgradation of construction workersfor last ten years. Recently, the stateGovernments of Haryana, Rajasthan,Madhya Pradesh and Bihar haveallotted 29 Industrial Training Institutes(ITIs) to the Construction IndustryDevelopment Council (CIDC) for fiveyears for testing skills and impartingtraining to construction workers CIDC.

For details e-mail: [email protected] Page: http://paniit.iitd.ac.in/~transpn/

CoordinatorsProf. G.Venkatappa Rao

Dr. Kalaga Ramachandra Rao

Construction Industry DevelopmentCouncil (CIDC) and India GypsumLimited (IGL) have decided to work

together in collaboration to undertakethe task of skill upgradation and trainingof construction workers in the area ofapplication of Gypsum Products forinterior finishes. CIDC and IGL agree tolaunch this Project at India Gypsum LtdTraining Centers at Mumbai, whichwould be henceforth become CIDCAccredited Training Centres. Accordingto the MoU, CIDC will also facilitate


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News & Events MB

April 200720MB

Tandon Gets

Structural Engineer

of t he Year Award

SAIL W ins SCO PE G old Trophy

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singhpresenting the SCOPE Gold Trophy to

SAIL Chairman Mr S.K. Roongta.

Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL)has been conferred the Gold Trophy of

the 'SCOPE Award for Excellence andOutstanding Contribution to the PublicSector Management' in theInstitutional Category for the year2004-05. The award was presented by

the Prime Minister of India,Dr Manmohan Singh, to SAIL ChairmanMr S.K. Roongta at a function heldat the Parliament Library Building inNew Delhi this morning. SAIL, thelargest steel maker of the nation, wasone of the leading PSUs that receivedthe award on the occasion. Institutedby the Standing Conference of PublicEnterprises (SCOPE), the apex bodyof public sector organisations, theaward aims to reward, recogniseand encourage the contribution ofpublic enterprises as well as of

outstanding individuals for their visionand leadership qualities in creatingnational wealth. The five-memberjury for the awards was headed byJustice P.N. Bhagwati.

In a glittering National Award

presentation ceremony recently,Prof Mahesh Tandon was accordedthe Archidesign Hindware Awardfor the 'Structural Engineer of the year2006' by the Foundation for Architecture& Environmental Awareness.Prof Tandon received the award fromMr R K Somany, Chairman ArchidesignAwards. Earlier in the year he washonoured by the Institution of theEngineers (India) in recognition of

his eminence and contributions to the

Dubai's Thr ee Best Sellers

Now In I ndia

Expomedia Events India the Indiansubsidiary of London based ExpomediaGroup plc in association with dmg worldmedia Dubai in a few weeks time are to

run the third edition of its co-locatedevents Interiors International India (III)and India International Construction &Contracting Exhibition (ICON) and thesecond edition of HospitalityInternational India (HII) to be held atIndia Expo Centre EXPI XXI from 3 rdMay - 5th May 2007. The co-locatedexclusive B2B exhibitions are aimed atbringing together the entire spectrum of

the interiors, hospitality andconstruction industry on a commonplatform. The last edition of the eventssaw participation of 137 companiesfrom 14 countries including 6 country

pavilions. The 2007 edition of theshows will see participation from 18countries across the globe - Germany,Spain, France, Italy, UK, Taiwan,Thailand, Philippines, China, Malaysia,Turkey, UAE, Jordan, Greece, Australia,Lebanon, New Zealand & India.The three day exhibition will providea great sourcing opportunity for tradevisitors with a wide range of productson display under one roof. The exhibitswould include an exhaustive range

of interiors, construction and hospitalityproducts, services & technology.Apart from the display of best ofproducts, technologies and brandsfrom across the globe, the events willalso feature the Annual Day Conferenceof Indian Institute of Interior Designers(IIID) and important seminars byFederation of Hotel & RestaurantsAssociation of India (FHRAI), andIndian Association of Structural

Engineers (IAStructE) providing anopportunity to interact with leadingnational and international personalities.

For further details contact:Rajnish SinhaManager- MarketingExpomedia Events IndiaSomdatt Tower, K-2, Sector-18Noida, IndiaPhone No.0120-2516110, 2516144

profession of Civil Engineering.At the FIB Congress at Naples, Italy,he was invited to present a keynotepaper on 'Elevated Viaducts of DelhiMetro' and the project was also

nominated for the OutstandingStructures Award' in recognitionof its positive influence and reputationand promotion of concrete structures.


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April 200722MB

ID FC P E to Invest

R s 400 crore

7% Increase in N H DP Allocation

A 7% increase in National HighwayDevelopment Programme (NHDP)allocation to Rs 10,667 crore wasannounced for the roads sector. In stepwith all the hype over development ofroads, Finance Minister P Chidambaram

has hiked the allocation for developinghighways in the Budget for 2007-08by more than Rs 700 crore. This hasbeen viewed many as not sufficientas the allocation is just sufficient forconducting feasibility studies and

ground work by the National HighwaysAuthority of India (NHAI) before

inviting bids in different phases.Another welcome initiative byChidambaram is the announcementon declaring the Rs 1,700 croreroad-cum-rail bridge at Bogibeel,Assam, over the Brahmaputra, as anational project. This is on the linesof the road-cum-rail bridge at Munger,Bihar, over the Ganga. This movewill ensure central assistance to theproject given the resource crunchof Assam. The project otherwise

would not have been possible.Completion of the project is expectedto improve connectivity of the north-east region both with the rest of thecountry and also with neighbouringcountries like China.

IDFC Private Equity (IDFC PE) isplanning to invest in the oil and gassector in a big way, especially in citygas distribution companies.The company is investing about $60million (Rs 270 crore) in KrishnaGodavari Gas Network Ltd (KGGNL)a gas distribution company aimed atbuilding intra-state transportation gridin Andhra Pradesh. IDFC PE, whichwould be the majority stakeholder inKGGNL, has roped in Gujarat State

Petroleum Ltd and Andhra PradeshIndustrial Development Corporation,the investment arm of the Andhragovernment, as equity partners forthe project. While announcing IDFC'sequity participation in QuipoInfrastructure Equipment Ltd (QIEL),Satish Mandhana, Executive VicePresident of IDFC PE, said the totalcorpus of IDFC PE is about Rs 2850crore, consisting of two funds. "The

first fund, which is of Rs 900 crore,has been exhausted, while 40% of thesecond fund has been committed.We aim to exhaust the second fundby December 2008."

In order to attract overseas funds for

ambitious core projects, the Keralagovernment has recently floated aninfrastructure public-private participationfirm - Inkel, and it is understood thatThe first of the series of overseasroadshows for Rs 100-cr InKel will getgoing from UAE in April this year.Roadshows in Europe and the US arealso in the pipeline and expected tofetch captial for the new firm. The state

R oad Shows Abroad to

Attract O verseas Funds for

Ambitious Core Projectsgovt has invited 50 NRI businessmen ofKerala origin for discussions to detail

the capital-base & operations of InKelFour places in Kerala, includingThiruvananthapuram and Kochi, areidentified for setting up parks forenterprises in sunrise industrialsegments. Roadshows abroad,beginning next month, are expected tofetch captial for the new company. Thedates of the roadshows in Europe, WestAsia and the US will be decided.

Noamundi Iron Mine has been bestowedwith the 6th Annual Greentech Safety

Gold Award 2006 in miming andmetal sector. The award was presentedon 22nd February 2007 at BombayExhibition Centre by Mr. Tony Smith,Executive Director, National SafetyCouncil, USA. On behalf of thecompany Mr. Sachindra Mahato,President, Noamundi Mazdoor Unionand Mr. Rajesh Kumar, Sr. Manager(Safety) received the award.

Gr eentech Safety

Gold award 2006 t o

Noamundi


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News & Events MB

April 200724MB

SRE I C oncludes R s 400 cr

Business in an Evening

at "Paison Ki N ilami

Tata Steel Conferred t he "Award for C orporate

Social R espon sibility in Public H ealth

SREI Infrastructure Finance Limited hasraked in business of a whopping Rs 400crore in a single day "Paison Ki Nilami"

event held on February 16th at thePragati Maidan in New Delhi. Theenthusiasm exhibited by customersbidding for the lowest possible interestrate on loans availed by them wasphenomenal given the unprecedentedturnout at the venue itself. On the CIIplatform for the first time, "Paison KiNilami" attracted over 700 customers tothe 'reverse auction', which allowed

them to hammer down coupon rates onloans sought by them for infrastructureequipment purchases. Simultaneously,SREI also ran its other popular schemessuch as SREI Lotto, where luck playeda part in the freezing of the interest rates,and SREI Money Bag, a passbookscheme with pre-determined credit limitsto customers. The advantage of such

a scheme is that customers can drawupon amounts or tranches of loan asper their requirement subject to amaximum limit.

The three schemes attracted over 1,500customers across the country includingover 900 registered bidders resulting inan aggregated business profile of Rs400 crore in just a single day whichunderscores SREI's success in eventbased marketing programmes. Theequipment pool for the Delhi showballooned to over a 1,000 numbersvalued over Rs 400 crore. Eighthundred and sixty of the equipmentpool was attributed to the "Paison KiNilami" event itself, while around 200odd equipment were sought bycustomers through the other schemesSREI Lotto and SREI Money Bag.K K Mohanty, executive director said,"the entire credit for this success goesto our valued customers who have,over the years, exhibited tremendousconfidence in our innovative and holisticvalue-added offerings in partnershipwith manufacturers."

Echoing Mr Mohanty's words, the CEOof asset finance, SREI, D K Vyas saidthat "events like "PKN" provides theright platform to buyers and sellersfor concluding large numbers oftransactions within a short time.This is in consonance with our objectiveof working with our customers andmanufacturers as partners, enablingthem to conclude large business withinthe shortest time with least interest.""PKN", on SREI's calendar for the

last two years has unleashed foursuch editions, the first time being inNovember 2004 in Kolkata. The maidenevent attracted nearly 300 biddersand a business of over Rs 100 crore.Traversing through Bhubaneswar,Hyderabad and now New Delhi,"PKN" has come a long way, thebusiness as well as the customerbase having grown substantially.

Tata Steel has been conferred "Awardfor Corporate Social Responsibility inPublic Health" by US-India BusinessCouncil (USIBC), Population ServicesInternational (PSI) and The Centerfor Strategic and International Studies(CSIS) at an event organized by FICCIheld at Taj Mahal Palace & Towerin Mumbai. Mr. B. Muthuraman,Managing Director, Tata Steel receivedthe award from Ms. Ashley Judd,acclaimed Hollywood actress and

PSI board member. Tata Steel hasbeen selected for the award for theiroutstanding contribution done forcombating HIV/AIDS. Receivingthe award, Mr. B Muthuraman,Managing Director, Tata Steel said,"As a corporate citizen, for almost acentury, Tata Steel Ltd is committedto improving the quality of the life ofits employees and also the communitythat we operate in. We have set someglobal benchmarks in corporate socialresponsibility and this award is yetagain recognition the exemplary workundertaken by Tata Steel in controlling

and prevention of a life threateningdisease like HIV/Aids.

Tata Steel Ltd's involvement towardspreventing HIV/AIDS dates back to

early 90s when the organisationrealised that the disease had acquiredepidemic proportions and acceptedthat its control or prevention was not thesole responsibility of the government.In 1994, the management of Tata SteelLtd evolved a Corporate Sector Model toprevent STD/HIV/AIDS and constituteda Core Group - AIDS and NodalCentre - AIDS to focus on this diseaseand formulate strategies for its controland prevention. Since more than adecade, annually approximately 250AIDS Awareness Programmes areconducted within the workplace.


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April 200726MB

Tata Steel Ltd pursuant to the DefinitiveAgreement signed on 15th January2007, has acquired 100 per cent ofequity stake in Rawmet IndustriesPrivate Limited (Rawmet), a companyhaving its registered office at Kolkata,at an enterprise value of Rs 101 crores.This is the second 100 per centacquisition of Tata Steel Ltd in Orissa.In September 1991, Tata Steel tookover the Ferro Alloy Plant in Bamnipal.Rawmet has a Ferro Alloy Plant nearCuttack, consisting of two 16.5 MVA

semi closed electric arc furnace havinga capacity of producing around 50,000tonnes per annum of High Carbon FerroChrome. The Board of Rawmet hasbeen reconstituted with nominees ofthe Company. Its Board now consistsof five Directors out of which four arenominees of Tata Steel Ltd. Prior to this,Tata Steel had taken over the Ferro-alloys plant in Bamnipal in Keonjhardistrict, which was considered as oneof the first successful disinvestment.

In September 1991, Tata Steel tookover the then "sick" unit for Rs. 156crores from erstwhile OMC Alloys.The plant has now surpassed its installedcapacity of 50,000 TPA of chargechrome/ ferro-chrome. The new featherin the Tata Steel's cap is yet anotherstep to further strength the hundredyear's relationship between the Stateand the Company.

Tata Steel Acquires

100 per cent Equity in

R awmet In dustries

N ew H yderabad Airport Ties up

Rs. 718 crore for Expansion

GMR Hyderabad International AirportLtd, (GHIAL) which is developing theinternational Greenfield airport atShamshabad, has executed financialagreements for borrowing Rs. 718crore from three banks: Abu DhabiCommercial Bank, Andhra Bank andVijaya Bank recently. This investmentis for creation of additional facilities,common fuel farm and business hotel

in the airport. The extra amenitiesbeing created include more aircraftparking stands, rapid exit taxiways, fulllength parallel taxiway and additionaloffice space for airlines, extra cargoterminal space, additional car parkingfor passengers and public, extraimmigration desks, self-check-inkiosks and bus gate lounges. Themoney would also be used to finance

installing additional securityequipments for meeting the safetystandards of BCAS.While the rupee term loans of Rs 200crore are being extended by AndhraBank and Vijaya Bank, Abu Dhabi

Commercial Bank would extend theremaining Rs 518 crore in US Dollarsin the form of external commercialborrowing (ECB). The ECB has arepayment moratorium of two yearsfrom the date of commencement ofthe airport operations, and therepayment schedule is spread over14 years thereafter. Speaking on theoccasion, Mr. T. Srinagesh, COO,GHIAL, said: We are happy to haveAbu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Vijaya

Bank & Andhra Bank on board forfunding of additional facilities at thenew airport. The money would beused to achieve our business goalof continuously meeting the demandsof services for increased passengergrowth. He added that the work isprogressing at a rapid pace and theairport would take-off as per schedulein March 2008.

8,000 MW from

2 Mega Pro jects

13 states will be benefitted from 2 ultramega power projects in Tilaiya(Jharkhand) and Cheyyur (Tamil Nadu),which is expected to generate 8,000MWThese two ultra mega power projects isdeveloped by PFC at the cost ofRs16,000 cr and Rs.20,000 cr. Thoughthe process of identifying companiesthat will build the projects involvescompetitive bidding, the government hasdecided to sign power purchase

agreements even before a developer isdecided. The government had initially

planned to set up nine ultra megaprojects to add capacity in a countrywith a total yield of 1,28,182 MW.

150 MW Wind Power Project

Reliance Wind Energy, an arm ofReliance ADA Group has finalisedarrangements to set up 150 MW windpower project with Suzlon Energy.Suzlon Energy will set up the WindFarm in Sangli District in Maharashtraat a cost of Rs 900 crores. This orderof 150 MW will make Reliance ADAGroup as one of the biggest wind energygenerators in the country. Reliance

has plans to set up 500 MW of windpower in over the next 2 - 3 years.


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Tata St eel Acquires Two Steel Rolling M ills in Vietnam

As part of the Company's focus onregional consolidation, Tata Steelthrough its wholly-owned subsidiaryNatSteel Asia Pte. Ltd. (NSA), hasentered into an agreement to acquirecontrolling equity stake in two rollingmills located in Haiphong, Vietnam,has entered into a conditionalagreement with Vietnam IndustrialInvestments Ltd (VII) to acquire: A100% stake held by VII in StructureSteel Engineering Pte Ltd (SSE(S)),and also A 70% stake held by VII inVinausteel Limited. The remaining

30% share is held by Vietnam SteelCorporation (VSC). By virtue of theacquisition of the respective stakes,NSA will effectively have acquiredtwo rolling mills located in Haiphong,North Vietnam: A 250k tpy bar/wirerod mill operated by SSE Steel Ltd(a wholly-owned subsidiary of SSE(S)),A 180k tpy reinforcing bar mill operatedby Vinausteel Ltd. The enterprisevalue for the acquisition is USD41

million, subject to certain closingadjustments on completion.The transaction should be completedby June 2007. Mr Oo Soon Hee,

President and CEO of NSA, said:The Vietnamese steel market has beengrowing at a healthy rate over the pastfive years. NSA believes the market forsteel products in Vietnam will continueto grow at a strong pace as consumptionof steel products in Vietnam on a percapita basis is relatively low. We areglad to have this opportunity to workclosely with VSC to enhance ourstrategic presence in Vietnam.

Essar Power is planning to investmentover Rs 13,000 crore in power andmining projects during 11th plan.The company proposes to set up1,000 MW each coal based power

Essar Power to invest

firms up Rs 13,000 Crore

projects in Maharashtra and Jharkhandwhile it has launched development of1,200 MW pit head coal based powerproject in Madhya Pradesh.The company last week has beenallotted a captive coal mine at Chakla,Jharkhand with the potential coalreserves of 110 million tonne whileEssar Power in joint venture withHindalco has launched developmentof captive coal mine allotted in Mahan,

Madhya Pradesh last year with the coalreserves of 180 million tonne. In case ofMadhya Pradesh mining venture, EssarPower and Hindalco would contribute50% equity each in the total 30% equitywhile raise 70% debt. The entire projectentails an investment of Rs 400 croreand the JV company would be able tostart coal production from 2010,according to the sources.

L&T Consortium bags

R s. 140 0 crore O rder for

Vizag Steel Plant Expansion

Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) and its

international consortium partners ofPaul Wurth Italia and India have bagged

an EPC package, valued over Rs. 1400crores, for the expansion of Vizag Steel

Plant of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited(RINL). This is the largest single-value

EPC order by the client and wasbagged against stiff international

competition from Chinese, Korean and

Russian firms. In line with the NationalSteel Policy envisaging production of110 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of

steel in the country by the year 2019-20,RINL has embarked upon a capacity

expansion at Vizag. It had invited bidsfor installation of a new third blast

furnace to double its capacity to 6.5MTPA of hot metal from the present

level of 3.2 MTPA. L&T will constructthis blast furnace - a state-of-the-art

3800 cu.m. unit with a capacity of 2.5million tonnes of hot metal per year.

This is the second biggest blast furnacein India. L&T's Construction Division,

ECC, will execute this contract inconsortium with Paul Wurth Italia within

a stringent time-frame of 30 months.L&T's scope of work includes complete

detailed engineering apart from certainareas of basic engineering based on the

process-engineering being supplied by

Paul Wurth. The complete indigenousmanufacturing and supply of equipmentlies in the scope of L&T. Apart from

this, complete site services including thecivil and structural works and erection

of equipment will be undertakenby L&T, with specialized supervision

being provided by Paul Wurth.L&T's contract-value in this project

is around Rs. 810 crores.


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D utch delegation in Kolkata

Stating that the Dutch ranks third inthe world in terms of infrastructure andIT industries, Mr Marten Van Den berg,Deputy Director General, ForeignEconomic Relations, Ministry ofEconomic Affairs, Govt of Netherlandssaid that the economy of India hasundergone major changes vis a visthe India of the 80's. Mr Van Der Berg

said that though the Netherlandsranks as one of the top investors inIndia, the country is very choosyabout selecting companies to dobusiness with. He stressed that thebusiness interests of his country liesin water coinnectivity, infrastructure,cold storage, food processing, agriand horticulture.

The Netherlands rank 5th in the list ofcountries in terms of cumulative FDIinflows into India during the period

August, 1991, till January, 2006. Thetotal inflows from the Netherlandsduring this period amounted to US $1.991 billion and accounted for 6.51%of total FDI inflows into India duringthe above period. In terms ofapprovals granted by the Governmentof India, the Netherlands ranked 7thwith cumulative approvals forinvestments worth US $ 2.473 billion.

This was stated by Mr HemantKanoria, Chairman, Infrastructure subcommittee, CII Eastern Region in anInteractive Session on Indo DutchCooperation today. Mr Kanoria saidthat the Dutch investments in Indiahave been mainly in the field oftelecommunications, services sector(financial and non-financial), trading,food processing industries andchemicals. Over a hundred Dutchcompanies have a vibrant presence in

India and ABN AMRO, Shell, RaboBank, ING Bank and ING Insuranceare virtually household names in India.The Netherlands is already among thethree largest investors in India, with anincreasing interest in offshoringopportunities on the part of Dutchcompanies. He said that his ownorganisation, SREI Infrastructure has51% Dutch stake in it.

CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green BusinessCentre recently organized a nationallevel seminar on "Electrical Systems",exclusively for Electrical Engineers,in Hyderabad. The seminar providesa platform for information sharing,disseminate information on latesttechnologies & networking with experts.While addressing the gathering,Mr. K N Shenoy, Past President,CII & Chairman, Sobis Software

(India) Pvt Ltd, mentioned about thetechnological development in the areasof power generation, transmission,utilization and demand - side EnergyEfficiency. He mentioned thatimprovement in power electronicsprovides increased functionality,intelligence & compactness to the system.He emphasized the importance ofadopting world-class maintenancepractice and employee empowerment

on new trends & latest technologies.Mr. L S Ganapathi, Chairman, ElectricalSystems 2007, in his theme addresshighlighted the necessity of proactiveand systematic approach to meet thegeneration capacity expansion planned,which requires huge infrastructure facility.He also highlighted the challenges forproviding reliable & quality power at inputstages. The national electrical energysaving potential is about 2500 MWequivalent to Rs. 10,000 Crores. The

electrical engineers have a major role toplay in tapping the energy saving potential.

Electr ical Engineers Key

for Tapping R s. 10,00 0cr.

Energy Saving Potent ial

DLF and Laing O'Rourke has enteredinto a strategic alliance in the form of aJV, DLF Laing O' Rourke (I) Pvt. Ltd.The JV formed will be the first

D LF forms JV with

Laing O'Rourke

international contracting agencycommitted to tapping India's long termpotential across the infrastructure sectorcovering express highways, airports and

hi-tech construction involvingpower plants and mega projects.The JV, which is a 50:50 partnership,will bring together world class

competencies in design, construction,safety, speed and post completionservices, making significant investmentsand creating employment opportunities.DLF Laing O' Rourke will be staffed bythe world's leading construction teamcomprising of the best of professionalsfrom India and overseas. The JV willundertake execution of a large numberof DLF's mega projects across thecountry as well as other projects.


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Tata Steel's Bearing

D ivision wins t he

Golden Peacock N ational

Q uality Award 20 06

Tata Steel's bearing division has wonthe Golden Peacock National QualityAward 2006 in the 'large manufacturingenterprise' category. The award is givenevery year to organisations for their

outstanding contribution to the fieldof business excellence that lead tosustenance of business and customerdelight. This prestigious award has beeninstituted by the Institute of Directors.The jury for the current year's awardworked under the chairmanship ofjustice P N Bhagawati, former chiefjustice of India and member,U N Human Rights Commission.

West Gujarat Expressway

West Gujarat Expressway Limitedis a Special Purpose Vehicle promotedby IL&FS and group company, IL&FSTransportation Networks Limited(ITNL) for the conversion of the68 km Jetput-Gondal-Rajkot andRajkot Bypass section of NH-8Binto an access controlled four-lanehighway and improvements to Gondal-Rajkot section The project is the firstof its kind being implemented underthe Viability Gap Funding Scheme ofNHAI and part of the prestigiousEast-West corridor programme of NHAI.

The total project cost is Rs 2402 mnfinanced by a debt equity of 2.25 :1

IL&FS Investsmart Limited (IIL) wasthe sole arranger for the senior debt ofRs 1662 mn financed in the debtequity of 2.25:1 with Punjab NationalBank as the Lead alongwith aconsortium of 7 banks. The projectinvolves the widening of existingJetpur-Gondal Section from 2-Lane to4-Lane (26 km), improvement of the

existing 4-Lane Gondal-RajkotSection (32 km) and widening of theexisting Rajkot bypass from 2-Laneto 4-Lane (10km) on National HighwayNo. 8-B in Gujarat on Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis. The project

cost is Rs 2402 m IL&FS and IL&FSTransport Networks Limited (ITNL)have incorporated West GujaratExpressway as the SPV to implementthe project Financial close has beenachieved and the construction hascommenced. The operations areexpected to commence by February2008. IL&FS and its group companiesare sponsoring, developing and actingas merchant bankers to this project

ADB and the InfrastructureDevelopment Finance Company Limitedof India have signed a $50 million loanto support the development ofinfrastructure in the country. India

needs substantial investment ininfrastructure if it is to achieve itseconomic growth targets, saidSeethapathy Chander, Deputy DirectorGeneral with ADB's Private SectorDepartment. The InfrastructureDevelopment Finance Companyperforms a critical role as the only significant domestic financial institution fullydedicated to infrastructure. The loan

ADB Supporting

Infrastructure

Development in India

with $5 0 M illion L oan

supports the Government's strategy ofencouraging private-sector participationin infrastructure development in light ofthe large investment requirements and

the limited amount of public-sectorfinancing available. The loan will alsohelp free up Government resourcesfrom investments in infrastructure toinvest in other types of expenditure,including social development projects.The $50 million was offered without aGovernment guarantee and has alonger tenor than previous US dollarborrowings by other Indian financialinstitutions from the market. As a result,

the loan will enable the company tooffer dollar denominated sub-loans toeligible subprojects in the infrastructuresector in the country.

AMP Capital Investors, the fundmanagement unit of Australia's biggestlife insurer, may raise as much as $500million to invest in Asian power and portprojects, with more than half destinedfor India. The fund management unit ofAMP Ltd. will start raising the moneyonce it has finished investing $102million from an existing fund that

focuses on Indian infrastructureprojects, according to the sources. AMPCapital will continue to invest in ports ascontainer volumes grow, and has alsofocuses on power generation, seekingto capitalize on surging demand forelectricity, he said. India produces about8 % less electricity than it needs, cuttinggross domestic product by a 10th,according to the finance ministry.

AMP plans $50 0 mInfrastructure Fund


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US $ 5 billion in Capital for Infrastructure Projects in India.

Infrastructure Development FinanceCompany Limited (IDFC), CitigroupInc. (Citi), India InfrastructureFinance Company Limited (IIFCL)and Blackstone Group Holdings L.P.(together with its affiliates, Blackstone)announced the launch of The IndiaInfrastructure Financing Initiative,a collaborative effort to deployapproximately US $ 5 billion in capitalfor infrastructure projects in India.The plan is to deploy about US$ 2billion in equity capital and US$ 3billion in long term debt financing

with maturities exceeding ten years.The equity financing program will bemanaged by IDFC and will invest ingreenfield, brownfield and operatingprojects primarily in roads, power,airports, ports, and industrial andcommercial infrastructure. IDFC,Citi and Blackstone will togetherinvest US$ 250 million. The balanceis expected to come from reputableinternational investors as well as

selected domestic institutionalinvestors including IIFCL.The agreement was signed recently byDr. Rajiv B. Lall from IDFC, Mr. SanjayNayar from Citi, Mr. S.S. Kohli fromIIFCL, and Mr. Robert L. Friedman

from Blackstone in the presence ofMr. P. Chidambaram, the FinanceMinister of the Government of India.This initiative is an important milestonein our search for innovative solutionsto meet the vast challenge of financingthe development of India's burgeoninginfrastructure sector. Mr. DeepakParekh, Chairman IDFC, added thatThis initiative sets a new benchmarkfor collaboration between a domestic

partner such as IDFC with deep domainknowledge in infrastructure, foreignfinancial institutions with wide reachinto global financial markets and theGovernment of India to solve India'sinfrastructure financing problems.Reiterating Citi's commitment to India,Mr. Charles Prince, Chairman andCEO of Citi had, in this context, statedearlier that Citi was excited about thisopportunity to make an impact on thedevelopment of infrastructure projects,which are critical to the country'sgrowth prospects and to be a partner

in this important initiative, whichwas born out of a request from theGovernment of India at the Indo-U.SCEO forum held in December 2006.Mr. Stephen A. Schwarzman ofBlackstone had stated that India beingan important part of Blackstone'sglobal strategy, this initiative wouldgive them an opportunity to makea meaningful contribution to India'sinfrastructure development.

The proposal of the Department ofAtomic Energy to set up two majornuclear power plants, one in Rajasthanand the other in Gujarat has been givena go ahead by the UPA Government.The two plants with four heavy waterreactors of 700 Mw capacities each willadd 2800 Mw nuclear capacity.

Centr e to Set U p Two

N uclear Power P lants

The first phase of the proposedChennai Metro project which envisagescorridor-1 from airport to Thiruvotiyur,31.54 km, and corridor 2 EVR PeriyarSalai to Fort , 13.54 km, is to be

Chennai Metro Phase-I

to cost R s 9,347 Crore

completed in 66 months at an estimatedcost of about Rs 9,347 crore, accordingto the brief project profile submitted

to the state government by the DelhiMetro Rail Corporation (DMRC).According to the sources the stategovernment would soon set up a'Metro Rail Project Committee toimplement the project. For the timebeing, the project is treated as a 'special

initiative under the administrativecontrol of the planning developmentand special initiatives department.

These two nuclear power projects arebeing set up in consonance with theVision 2020 of the nodal department,according to which the installed nuclearpower capacity is expected to beramped up to 20000 MW. As per thesources the Environment Ministry hasalready given clearances based onrecommendations of the GujaratPollution Control Board after conductingpublic hearing to locate the nuclear

power plant at Kakrapar.


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April 200740

FaL-G : CDM Project Signedwith the World BankFaL-G : CDM Project Signedwith the World Bank

At the ongoing proliferation of over

200-250 FaL-G units every year, not only the

World Bank but a couple of more proactive

agencies such as JCF, Japan, and KFW,

Germany, would be tagged with projects verysoon says INSWAREB.

THE CARBON CREDIT PROJECTwhichINSWAREB has been relentlessly pursuing, is

ultimately signed recently with The World

Bank. Ms Gayathri Ramachandran, Special ChiefSecretary & Director General-EPTRI, Government of

Andhra Pradesh, and Mr Michael Rathnam, TaskManager-Carbon Finance, The World Bank,Washington, addressed and conferred the Certificate

of Participation to the Privileged Entrepreneurs ofthe FaL-G brick/block Plants, enlisted as Sub-Project

Entities (SPEs) in the project.

Despite holding a patent on FaL-G technology,INSWAREB has been disseminating the

technology to tiny sector without any royalties, as

a service to Ecology. To accelerate the proliferation

through incentive mechanism carbon revenue wasconsidered as an opportunity and, INSWAREB

approached World Bank way back in the year 2000,

offering carbon credits generated out of FaL-Gbrick/block production. But the proposal did not

come through, as India was not a signatory to the

Kyoto Protocol at that time. Subsequently, Indiabecame a signatory to the Protocol in 2002. In the

same year The World Bank launched another

carbon fund instrument, Community DevelopmentCarbon Fund (CDCF). INSWAREB took the

opportunity and filed the first project with theWorld Bank highlighting the following features of

FaL-G brick/block activity to servethe community:

FaL-G bricks replace clay bricks, conserving the

precious topsoil, otherwise necessary to protect thefertility of agriculture lands. Each FaL-G brick plant

in tiny sector can absorb 10-15 workers. Thus over

2500 plants working throughout India have

contributed to employment to over 30,000 workers

with a further potential for 6 lakhs workers, when

the 50,000-unit target could be accomplished.

Contrary to the seasonal employment in clay brick

industry, FaL-G brick plants provide yearlongemployment with handsome wages over clay brick

units. Such job security would relieve the worker

from the status of bonded-labour, which is more

prevalent in clay brick industry.

By not using thermal energy, each million FaL-G

bricks conserve over 200 tons of coal or equivalent

fuel. Thus carbon emissions are abated. In view of

holistic compliance to the Sustainable Development

indicators and Community Development agenda,the World Bank agreed to take up FaL-G as CDM

project. But as there was no specified approved

methodology for total energy avoidance, it was

opined that a new methodology would be needed,that took considerable time. Ultimately the projectis registered with an approved methodology under

Type II-D. Energy Efficiency and Fuel Switching

measures for Industrial facilities.

Promoting a carbon abatement activity asCDM project is a laborious exercise, involving a

lot of effort and record work. Keeping in view the

consultancy from high profile experts, the

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April 2007 41

transaction costs are very high that deter small

scale and tiny sector units in staking their claims

for credits, despite virtuous activity to earn them.

To overcome this stalemate, INSWAREB opted

to avail the scope of Bundling provided byUNFCCC in small scale activity, by which, over

108 micro industrial plants producing FaL-G

bricks, each with a potential to generate over

1000 credits every year, are being tied up into afew bundles and offered as CDM projects.

In order to handle the commercial deals and

agreements, a separate corporate outfit by name, Eco

Carbon Pvt. Ltd., has come into existence,committing to transfer to the World Bank 600,000

tons of CO2 credits under contractual obligation and200,000 credits under call option. Back to back

agreements were signed with each FaL-G brick plant

committing over Rs. 50,000 per each million bricks(equivalent to 1540 cu.m) as the carbon revenue till

2015. In addition to carbon revenue to the

entrepreneurs, this activity provides certain privileges

to the workers under Community Benefit Program, at

a budget of over Rs. 2.80 crores during the project

period. These are:

Providing self-protection gadgets such asgumboots, helmets, nose masks and gloves to

the workers.

Water purifying systems at each FaL-G plant for

serving drinking water to the workers.

Construction of bathroom cum toilet for workers.

Health and life insurance to workers every year.

Health check up once in a year.

Aids-awareness program.

Not all FaL-G brick plants can take part in the

project. Those units, came into existence on or

after 1st January 2004, are only eligible to

participate. Diligent production practices inmaintaining quality and adhering to statutory

compliances are additional mandate to enlist the

units for this project, says INSWAREB, whomonitors the plants all along the project period for

due diligence. Under the Monitoring Plan, ECPL

audits production records of all the accredited

entrepreneurs in order to compute Emission

Reductions (ERs) annually. These credits are

reported to the World Bank vide Annual EmissionReduction Report.

There upon, the World Bank would get the

credits verified by its Designated Verifiers within

one and half month, based on which ECPL wouldsubmit a Transfer Form to the World Bank for

transfer of ERs. The carbon proceeds are released to

ECPL within 60 days of receipt of Transfer Form,

which would, in turn, be transferred to brick units

based on their earning of credits.

At the ongoing proliferation of over 200-250

FaL-G units every year, not only the World Bank

but a couple of more proactive agencies such asJCF, Japan, and KFW, Germany, would betagged with projects very soon

says INSWAREB.

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Exclusive Show Roomfor Waterproofing Products

in Chennai

Exclusive Show Roomfor Waterproofing Products

in Chennai

SHREE BHUVANESWARI INC (SBI) hasopened an exclusive showroom for

waterproofing products in the main building

materials market at Koyambedu, Chennai.

According to Mr.S.Muthuperumal - ManagingDirector of M/s M.P Integrated Roofing Pvt. Ltd

and promoter of M/s Shree Bhuvaneswari Inc., this

is the first of its kind in the country to have an

exclusive showroom for both imported and locally

manufactured waterproofing products for variousjob specifications such as Roofs, Basement, Water

Tanks, Walls, Toilets, Swimming Pools and for

other applications. We offer you the after sales

technical support by our trained and experienced

engineers. Our line of products include APP & SBS

modified bitumen membranes for new andmaintenance jobs. We can also provide turnkey

solutions for new basement jobs with our wide

range of imported membranes.

We are also stockiest for leading crystallinewaterproofing system like ICS PENETRON- USA,

GREEN SEAL MALAYSIA.

The main advantage of Crystallinewaterproofing system is to arrest ,water seepage in

existing basement by coating the crystalline

chemicals from negative side ( from inside )the

basement. The technology behind this system is to

prevent the movement of water through theconcrete by plugging or blocking the natural pores

and capillaries found in all concrete.Since this system is now followed in many new

upcoming mega IT parks, the crystalline products areavailable at a affordable prices.

Other allied products like Acrylic , Silicone and

PU sealants are also available from leading

international brands at whole sale price.

It is intended to focus and serve the DO IT

YOURSELF market.

Enquiries related to the water leakage problems in

a building are recorded and solutions are given to thecustomer from our vide range of products. If

necessary we are even deputing our technicians at a

reasonable charges.

Moreover, seminar and presentations are to beorganised for Institutions, Architects,

Consultants, Builders, Contractors and end users to

update with the latest products and methods

followed across the globe.

The main advantage of Crystalline

waterproofing system is to arrest ,water

seepage in existing basement by coating the

crystalline chemicals from negative side (

from inside )the basement.

Waterproofing


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SREI and EBRD inStrategic AllianceSREI and EBRD inStrategic Alliance

SREI INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCE LIMITEDwill shortly enter into a strategic partnership

with the European Bank for Reconstruction and

Development (EBRD), one of the worlds leading

international financial institutions. The strategic

partnership comprises an investment by the EBRDin the equity of SREI Russia and extension of credit

lines to support the business of the overseas

company. While the equity stake will be

formalized at the EBRD board meeting later this

month, the multilateral funding agency has agreedto invest in principle roughly 15 per cent in the

Euro 5 million equity of SREIs Russian venture.

Credit lines, however, will be project specific.

Interacting with newspersons in Mumbai, Mr

Jean Lemierre, the EBRD president said it isactively pursuing investment models, which will

encourage Indian business houses to invest in East

Europe and Central Asia. We do not only invite

EBRD has been a great partner to us in

our foreign endeavor. Their understanding

of the conditions in Russia has enabled us to

look at the huge potential that welcomes us

in the Russian infrastructure sectordevelopment, according to Mr Hemant

Kanoria, vice chairman and managing

director of SREI

business groups but also share risks in the projects

where we facilitate foreign investments, Mr

Lemierre said. Mr Hemant Kanoria, vice chairman

and managing director of SREI, the first Indian

company to partner EBRD overseas said, EBRD

has been a great partner to us in our foreignendeavor. Their understanding of the conditions in

Russia has enabled us to look at the huge potential

that welcomes us in the Russian infrastructure

sector development.

This will be the first direct project of the

EBRD with an Indian company and its

association is likely to pack a punch to the growing

involvement of SREIs foray into the construction

equipment leasing sector in Russia. SREIs growth

graph is well known given its strong linkages andrelationships with the multilateral financial

institutions, vendors and its successful experience

in India.

Having set up its operation is Russia in the latter

half of 2005, the company has chalked out plans to

scale up businesses by rapidly entering the strategic

infrastructure space in the region which today is

experiencing a boom.

Joint Ventures


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April 2007 45

Incorporated in 1970 under the leadership of late

Mr. Pramod P. Shah, Steelfab has carved a niche in

designing, engineering, detailing, manufacturing,erecting & cladding of pre-engineered buildings, apart

from manufacturing trapezoidal profiled colour

coated galvalume sheets, bare galvalume sheets,

PPGO sheets, G.I. sheets, space frame structures andmodern steel scaffolding systems. Steelfabs team

consists of resourceful which leverages on emerging

trends with effortless ease. Armed with over three

decades of experience and top of the line expertise,

steelfab offers the best in terms of quality anddurability. Ongoing efforts at the research cell results

in sourcing quality materials from all over the world

at the best prices.

Every component is checked time and again beforeinstallation, during installation and after installation

to eliminate even the slightest doubt of error. The

design and research cell takes each suggestion and

opinion from our clients seriously and starts working

on it almost immediately. The competitive pricing isthe result of understanding the value of money. Its

just in time approach has enabled the company to

perform under strict deadlines and three decades ofexperience has added value to its commitments. The

quick response is not limited to the delivery of thestructure, but also the after sales service, which is the

companys forte.

Steelfab is equipped in dealing with turnkey

projects as it has a fully-equipped design department

with latest international design softwares, fully-equipment production facility for PEB & Sheets.

STEELFAB


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Sankalpan Group

Unveils National

Expansion Plans

Sankalpan Group

Unveils National

Expansion Plans

MUMBAI-BASED SANKALPAN GROUP,Indias foremost and fastest growing

integrated realty and premium infrastructure

services provider having interests in architectural design

consultancy, turnkey fit-outs, infrastructure projects and

commercial real estate development, has recentlyunveiled its business expansion plan across the country.

Detailing on Sankalpans current projects, Mr. Atin

Kulkarni, Vice-Chairman said, Having already executed

more than 600 projects across India, Sankalpan is ready

for more and set to unveil innovations. We have recently

bagged a $ 2 million interior fit-out turnkey project for a

leading NASDAQ listed IT major. We will be designing

700 seats facility at one of the SEZ in Chennai that will

have the latest imported furniture, fittings and finish, notto forget an interior design that matches the

international standards with Sankalpans touch

all across.

Mr. Ninad Randive, Chairman, Sankalpan

Group said, There is great potential in India

wherein the IT Parks and Retail infrastructure

requirements are fast escalating. In near future,

single point sourcing for all construction activities

will be the rule of the game. Anticipating this

trend much in advance, we are already providingintegrated services to our clients easing their

complex tasks. Sankalpan is currently looking for

potential partners who would bring in financial

strength while we contribute our expertise in

project management. As of now, we have our

presence felt in all the major metros and several

strategic cities across India. Now we intend to

explore business opportunities in potential

tier -2 cities.

Sankalpan will soon be launching its facilitymanagement services as a new business venture and is

looking for potential partners. With globalization,

there is tremendous pressure to match international

workplace standards. This is where a huge need for

trained facility managers is being felt across the

country and Sankalpan would like to bridge this gap.

Sankalpan is expecting a turn over of around $ 35

million this fiscal.

Technology


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April 200748

Infrastructure ProjectFunding as a Guide to

Steel Capacity Planning

Infrastructure ProjectFunding as a Guide to

Steel Capacity PlanningTanmayRoy

Deputy General Manager (C&IT) of SteelAuthority of India Limited

The objective of this paper is to examine

the reliability of the capacity expansion spree

in the steel sector currently being witnessed

by the country vis-a.-vis the emerging

pattern of funding in the infrastructuresector of the national economy.

THE INDIAN ECONOMY is on a roll withGDP galloping at more than 8% per annum

and promising to cross the threshold of double

digit growth in near future. There is considerable

euphoria about everything, be it construction,

manufacturing or service etc. the key sectors of thenational economy. Both infrastructure and

manufacturing sectors are major drivers of domestic

demand of steel as well. The bullish performance of

the domestic economy is generating huge interest in

the market place, especially among the steel baronswho are on an unprecedented spree to add capacities

at breakneck speed. A kind of mad rush appears to

have gripped the domestic steel industry giving rise

to a rather pertinent question, Are all these

investments justified in the long run? Lets exploreand examine.

Issue

Risk & Uncertainty are integral to any investment

decision and steel sector is no exception. It is alwaysprudent to examine any such investment decision

from as many diverse and different angles as possible.

More such analyses are carried out, it is better for the

investor as it enables him or her to prejudge the

available options and decide on the best course of

action. Such analyses help reduce the element of risks

and uncertainties often associated with such projects

by generating more incisive information of the same.

Purpose

The objective of this paper is to examine the

reliability of the capacity expansion spree in the steel

sector currently being witnessed by the country vis-a.-vis the emerging pattern of funding in the

infrastructure sector of the national economy. Nearlyhalf of the total volume of steel consumed by the

domestic economy end up in the construction of

infrastructure projects in the public and privatedomains including the household sector of the

country. The balance portion is consumed by the

manufacturing sector of the economy.

So the pattern of investment in the infrastructure

sector holds an important key to the growth andperformance of the steel sector. And in this context,

the resource mobilizing ability of the economy,especially the union government is the most

significant factor having maximum impact on the

demand and consumption level of steel in thedomestic economy.

Funding

The approach paper to the eleventh five-year planprepared and circulated by the Planning Commission

in June 2006 targets a GDP growth of 8.5 % p.a. for

Source %Share $ billion pa Rs crorepa

Private Sector

Fund 22% 15.00 67,500

ODA 11% 8.00 36,500

Public Sector

Fund 67% 47.00 2,11,000

Table 1

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Subject to realization of the planned

targets of raising resources and spending of

the same in project construction, the country

is set to witness a massive expansion of steeldemand exceeding 84 million tones in the

form of finished steel or 98 million tonne or

nearly 100 million tonne in the form of crude

steel by the year 2011-12. This estimate

surpasses the governments projected capacity

expansion plan of 80 million tonnes of crude

steel by a healthy margin.

and multi lateral agencies which together account for

25 %, the Public Sector is presently pumping in 75 %

of the infrastructure capital which comes to

Rs.1,21,000 crore. This leaves a gap of Rs.90,000

crore ( 2,11,000 - 1,21,000) that needs to beorganized additionally every year from the current

level to meet the resource gap projected in the

eleventh plan period.

The government is, however, optimistic that it

would be able to mobilize the additional Rs.90,000

crore pa for the infrastructure sector by bringing in

more innovative ideas and thinking out of the box.

Construction Cost

The Planning Commission had commissioned a

study to determine the costing pattern of various

types infrastructure projects ranging from buildings,

roads, bridges, dams to power plants, railway projects

etc. The study identified that the cost of construction

materials alone ranging from 40 to 60 % depending

on the nature of the project, dominates the cost of an

infrastructure project. The project wise distribution ofmajor cost components of infrastructure projects is

furnished in the following table 2.

Steel: Cement Ratio

In infrastructure project construction, steel and

cement constitute the bulk of the construction

materials. Hence the cost of steel and cement

dominate the overall cost of construction materials.Besides steel and cement, materials like sand, stone,

ballasts, timber, etc. also add to the cost of materials.

Nevertheless, steel and cement, being consumed in

relatively higher volumes dominate the cost of

construction materials as a whole.

The intensity of steel indices will however dependon the unit in which the projects are evaluated and

measured. Lets take, for example, the cost of steelversus cement. Presently, the country consumes about

40 million tones of steel and 140 million tones of

cement which gives the ratio of Steel: Cement as 1

:3.5, when expressed in quantitative terms or physical

units. Given the wide disparities between the unitprices of steel and cement, the ratio becomes radically

different, almost opposite as 7.5:1, when expressed in

absolute rupee or value units. However, taking into

account the current consumption pattern of both thematerials in the domestic economy, the relative orweighted average ratio comes to 2:1. This is evident

from the following table 3.

This exercise analyses the impact of infrastructure

funding on the demand of steel in value measure.Hence, steel intensities are expressed as percentage of

Table 3

Quantity Measure Value MeasureConsump-tion in

Ratio Price AbsoluteRatio

WeightedRatio

Million

Tonne

Steel :Cement

Rs / Tonne Steel :Cement

Steel :Cement

Steel 40 --- 30,000

1: 3.5 7.5: 1 2: 1

Cement 140 4,000

the cost of materials in Re or value unit. From

the above table it is evident that constructional

steel items account for 2/3rd or 67% of the

material cost. This index will be useful forcrosschecking the accuracy of the size of thesteel market derived later.

Steel Intensity

The intensity of steel vis-a.-vis the othermaterials vary widely from one type of project

to another. For example, the infrastructure

projects of the railways, energy, ports and

shipyard sectors which comprise of fabricated


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April 200752

steel structure in a big way have a greater intensity of

usage of steel as compared to those of the irrigation,

aviation, housing where cement in the shape of plain

and reinforced concrete plays a more dominate role.

The steel intensity therefore varies widely from one

type of project to another.

Invalue terms, depending on the type of

construction involved, it may vary from as high as

90% of the construction materials for the Railway

projects which by design are extremely steel intensive

to as low as 30% for the projects in Roads and

Highways sector. Energy and Port sectors are the

other steel intensive sectors. Aviation, Irrigation and

House constructions generally reflect 50 -60% steel

usages among construction materials expressed invalue terms.

Market Size in Value Measure

Recognizing the relevance of the differential rates ofsteel intensities vis-a-vis the type of projects and also

keeping in mind the variability, however small may it

be, in the nature of the cost of the construction

materials explained earlier, it is possible to derive the

potential market of contraction steels market byevolving a simple empirical relationship as under

Let,

Total number of infrastructure projects = nand

vjdenotes the investment in the ith type of project,

cjdenotes the % share of the cost of construction

materials for the ith type of project,

Sj denotes the steel intensity expressed as % of thetotal cost of the construction materials for the i th type

of project

Then,

The demand or the market size of constructional

steel in value measure for the ith type of project is

defIned by

di= v

jX c

jX Sj for each i = 1, ,n and the

overall market size of constructional steel in valuemeasure across all types of infrastructure projects is

given by

Highways 2,20,000 44% 96,800 30% 29,040

Railways 3,00,000 52% 1,56,000 90% 1,40,000Energy 5,40,000 43% 2,32,000 80% 1,85,760

Airports 40,000 51% 20,400 60% 12,240

Ports 50,000 50% 25,000 70% 17,500

Irrigation 80,000 44% 35,200 60% 21,200

Others 3,45,000 60% 2,07,000 50% 1,03,500

Total 15,75,000 49% 7,72,600 66% 5,09,560

Table 4

SteelIntensity

(%) Rs. CroreRs. Crore%

ShareRs. Crore

Sectors

Infra-structure

Project In-vestment

ConstructionMaterial Cost

ConstructionalSteel Market

n n

Dy = L dj= L V

jX C

jX Sj i i

i

The above formula has been applied to the

projected investment figures as set out in the

various documents of the government to arrive

at a plausible or most likely size of theconstructional steel market in value unit

during the plan period 2007-08 to 2011 -12 as

shown in table 4.Cross-Check

The above model or the empirical

relationship based on the type of infrastructure

project wise coefficients of material costs, steel

intensities etc. generates an overall market size

of Rs 5,09,560 crore for the constructional

steel in the country for the Xth plan period.

This figure yields an overall or weighted


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of domestic demand of constructional steel, table 8

shows the relationship may be of particular interest to

the researchers in this field.

Room for Optimism

The findings of this explorative exercise led to a

set of inferences which may be broadly classified as

optimistic and skeptic. There are enough reasons to

believe that the projected plan investments will resultin a major boost to the domestic steel industry. Some

of these are indicated below.

There exists a high degree of synergy among the

plans drawn up by the Planning Commission, theprojections made by the Steel Ministry and the

policy initiatives adopted by the Finance Ministry.

The government is gearing up to mobilize the

required amount of resources to the tune of $ 350billion or more in order to ensure success of the

eleventh five year plan targets, especially, in the

infrastructure sector.

Government is also adopting innovative measuresto bolster the project formulation and execution

capabilities of the nation by leveraging the power

of the private sector in relevant areas of

operations.

If the resources are mobilized and spent as per theplan drawn up, the macro economic analysis of the

current paper suggests that the demand of crude steel

projected by the Steel Ministry to the tune of 80

million tonnes by 2011-12 will in all likely hoods be

surpassed by a healthy margin. It may even exceed100 million tonne mark much sooner than

anticipated.Cause of Concern

Synergy of planned targets among the various

Ministries and the Planning Commission do not

however eliminate the risk and uncertainties

associated with such a massive endeavor. The possible

areas which might derail the projected plan ofinfrastructural spending and the developmental efforts

of the economy are -

Mobilisation

Projectisation Execution

Needless to add that mobilizing the massive level

of investment is a challenge facing the nation. Inspiteof the optimism oozed by the government, the

skeptics may continue to express their concern

whether the same would be achievable, keeping in

view the none-to-happy records of performance in the

past. The estimates are as accurate as the projectedinvestment levels laid down in official documents.

Any slippage will trigger a chain of adverse reactionon the demand of steel. The government needs to be

more proactive and play the role of a visionary

entrepreneur in the infrastructure sector.

The sectoral requirements of funds do not

automatically translate into deployment of funds.

Infrastructure projects typically take about four to

five years from the concept to commissioning. The

success of the planned level of investment wouldTable 8

Steel Intensity: Tonnes / Crore of

Infrastructure Investment

Highways 42

Railways 135Energy 106

Airports 108

Ports 111

Irrigation 84

Other Constructions 96

Over all ( Construction Steel) 100


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April 2007 59

imply that projects worth Rs.15,7 5,000 crore should

be ready so that the same level of investment can be

absorbed during the course of next five to seven years

by 2011-12.

Nobody really knows how much of the projected

fund has really been projectised. The experts feel that

only about 20 % of the funds can be considered to be

projectised by now. The absence of a systematicstatistical superstructure capable of collecting data on

projects actually happening on the ground levels like

the central, state, municipal and rural across the

public and private domains is standing in the way of

monitoring the project implementation in anauthentic way.

The story at the rural, urban, municipal and statelevels is also not very encouraging.

Barring exceptions, the pace of projectimplementation continues to be a cause of serious

concern. Obviously, the relevant agencies, the central

and state governments, need to substantially improve

their project planning and execution machinery so

that funds once made available can be translated into

actions without any loss of time. The country needs


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April 200760

to increase its project structuring and execution

capacity by a minimum factor of three immediately.

Though the major builders are fast emerging asproject developers with self-financing models

shedding their age-old image of contactors, the

project execution capability of the countrys

construction sector is not fully known. The majorbuilders are already having their capacities

overbooked with orders. The countrys construction

segment is likely to be stretched beyond its limitunless new players come forward and shore up the

capacity in a big way.

Innovative Measures

Responding to the urgency of the nations

infrastructure building effort, the government is busyinnovating new measures to counter the negativeeffect of the underlying risk and uncertainties as

discussed above.

In resource mobilization area, the government is

really thinking out of the box .. Among the various

measures the government is contemplating thefollowing deserve special mention

Canalizing a part of the massive foreignexchange reserve to the tune of $ 177 billion for

funding the infrastructure projects. This isproposed to be done by the Special PurposeVehicle (SPV) like India Investment Company

with a capital of $ 10 billion. This would enableRBI to earn more instead of parking the fund in

the treasuries abroad.

Utilizing a part of the pension fund for funding

investment projects.

Launching and encouraging Viability Gap Fundingthrough Special Purpose Vehicles to make non-

commercially viable projects attractive to theprivate developers and commer

emasterbuilder april 07

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