L&T Appoints Citigroup as Investment Banker for Satyam Bid - Larsen & Toubro is understood to have appointed Citigroup as the investment banker for a possible Satyam bid. Currently, no bidder has a clear picture about the assets and liabilities of Satyam since the board will be unable to present the re-stated accounts. Under these circumstances, valuing Satyam could prove to be a challenge. On Wednesday, L&T chairman AM Naik had officially stated that the company was awaiting communication from the Satyam board. The company has so far invested Rs 650 crore for its 12% in Satyam at an average price of Rs 78 per share and has ruled out selling its stake in case of a dilution, as the board has proposed a preferential allotment of Satyam’s shares. (The Economic Times)
LG India to Create 2200 New Jobs in 2009 - LG Electronics India has decided to create 2200 new jobs in 2009. The new jobs are planned to boost the company's R&D, sales and after-sales service infrastructure in India. While LG plans to create nearly 2,000 blue-collar jobs for its service network, the remaining 200-odd recruitments will be absorbed in sales and R&D functions. LG would mainly focus on GSM Mobile phones, commercial air conditioners and LCD TVs. Accordingly, the company is beefing up its sales and research man power for these product segments. (The Economic Times)
Bhushan Power & Steel Promoter to Hike Offer Price in Orissa Sponge - Bhushan Power & Steel promoter Sanjay Singhal, who had earlier announced an open offer to acquire 26% stake in Orissa Sponge, is planning to hike his offer price to take over the Bhubaneswar-based firm. This is to contest a counter offer made by Delhi-based Monnet Group to gain control of Orissa Sponge. On Wednesday, Monnet Group, which holds 14.9% stake in Orissa Sponge, announced an open offer to acquire additional 20% stake from the shareholders at Rs 310 per share. Sanjay Singal had offered Rs 300 per share three weeks ago. Sanjay Singal's estranged brother Neeraj Singal who is the promoter of public listed Bhushan Steel, is also preparing to announce an offer for in a week to counter Monnet's offer. (The Economic Times)
Chevron Corp Likely to Exit RPL - According to the industry sources, Chevron Corp, which holds a 5% stake in Reliance Petroleum Ltd (RPL), is likely to exit the company. This comes in the wake of the merger proposal to be considered by the boards of RPL and its parent Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) on March 2. The US-based company is likely to take the exit route shortly. RIL currently holds 70.38 per cent in RPL, while US oil major Chevron Corp has 5 per cent holding. The remaining is held by the public and financial institutions. (Business Lines)
Havells India Restructures Global Operations - Electrical products maker Havells India, which acquired international lighting products maker SLI Sylvania in 2007, is restructuring its global operations to generate efficiencies. It has consolidated entire compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) manufactur-ing units into a single plant based at Neemrana and has rejigged the manufacturing operations for switchgears within the country. Havells has shut down the UK-based CFL plant which employed around 250 people, and the entire production has been shifted to Neemrana in Rajasthan. The UK plant, located at Shipley, was ac-quired as part of Sylvania deal two years ago. Havells has also consolidated existing Indian units which produced the energy efficient lighting products in Faridabad and Haridwar. After the consolidation, the Neemrana plant is expected to produce 70 million units of CFL from 24 million units currently. The headcount at Neemrana will increase from 1,400 to 1,700. (The Economic Times)
GAIL to Buy 19% in ONGC’s Dahej SPV - Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) is planning an initial public offering (IPO) of its subsidiary, which is building the Rs 12,440 crore petrochemical plant at Dahej in 2011, even as it agreed to give the state gas utility GAIL India a 19 per cent stake in the mega project. The public sector major is considering selling up to 25 per cent of the equity shares in ONGC Petro-additions (OPaL), the special purpose vehicle formed for setting up petrochemical complex at Dahej SEZ. The IPO is expected to happen about one and a half years from now. ONGC agreed yesterday evening to GAIL's request for 19 per cent stake in the venture. ONGC will give 20% - 25% stake to a foreign partner who is either a product off taker or a marketer. (Business Standard)
