HEADLINER
Onkar S. Kanwar

GLOBALLY, APOLLO TYRES ranks no. 16 in terms of size. But now it may have an opportunity to move up on the rankings. On January 30, even as the Delhi-based tyre major announced a marginal drop in its net profit for the third quarter of 2005-06 to Rs 16.40 crore, it announced it was buying Dunlop Tyres International for Rs 290 crore for all cash. Dunlop Tyres, a privately-held company, has plants in Durban and Ladysmith in South Africa with a combined annual capacity of 50,000 tons. Dunlop Tyres, which has a subsidiary each in Zimbabwe and the UK, will give Apollo access to markets in (besides South Africa) Europe, central Asia, Australia and South America. "The synergies between our two companies will add enormous value. (Following) this acquisition, Dunlop's know-how will further boost Apollo's R&D and market reach, enabling us to maintain our technology-driven product and market leadership," Apollo's Chairman and MD Onkar Singh Kanwar said in a release. Although there are concerns over how Apollo will fund the acquisition, Singh has quite clearly put the company on the global map.

Marico Snaps Up HLL's Nihar

Mariwala: Well-oiled move

Harsh Mariwala moved a step closer to his dream of turning Marico into a Rs 2,000-crore company in another three years. On January 27, Marico announced it was buying Hindustan Lever's hair oil brand, Nihar, for over Rs 100 crore. At last count, the brand fetched Rs 120 crore a year in revenues. "Nihar elegantly complements Marico's strengths in both coconut oil and perfumed hair oils," Mariwala said in a statement. In perfumed coconut oils, Nihar is the national market leader, and it will add to Marico's presence in the Rs 800-crore coconut oil market. Nihar is Marico's first acquisition priced at over Rs 100 crore.

Sun To Spin off R&D Business

When BT went to press, pharma's new star Sun Pharmaceuticals was reportedly considering spinning off its R&D activity into a separate company. In what is a growing trend, drug-makers are trying to put the high risks of drug discovery and development into a company other than the marketing entity. Dr Reddy's Labs had recently done so by setting up an R&D firm Perlican Pharma.

L&T's Naik: Spreading wings

L&T Widens Defence Spectrum

Karsen & Toubro's A.M. Naik has given his newly-launched defence electronics and avionics business a significant push. L&T has signed a deal to acquire the Bangalore-based Spectrum Infotech, which specialises in contract electronic R&D and has customers, including Bharat Electronics (BEL) and Hindustan Aviation. It was founded six years ago by two Indian professors from Stanford and former CMD of BEL.

NEWSMAKERS
BROTHERS AMBANI

The battle continues: Mukesh (left) and Anil Ambani

Seven months after brothers Mukesh and Anil Ambani agreed, after a prolonged public battle, to split the Rs 1,00,000-crore Reliance empire between themselves, they are back trading charges. This time around, younger brother Anil has accused Mukesh-led Reliance Industries of slow-pedalling the transfer of ownership of four companies (Reliance Energy Ventures, Reliance Communications Ventures, Reliance Capital Ventures, and Reliance Natural Resources) to his Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG). In a brief press conference, ADAG director Satish Seth said the non-transfer of shares to his group was a "deliberate and criminal attempt" and "made a mockery of all fundamental principles of propriety...and corporate governance". Seth also added that the non-transfer of shares "violated the philosophy of the overall settlement" between the two brothers, without giving details of the settlement.

In its defence, Mukesh's RIL said that the delay was due in part to Anil himself. "We have completed all formalities for listing three companies (all are special purpose vehicles)...it was the Anil camp which was pressing for delayed listing, especially of Reliance Communications Ventures."

The latest spat, however, seems to have started over supply of gas by RIL to ADAG (which may now be renamed Reliance-ADAG). On February 3, J.P. Chalasani, ADAG's director on Reliance Natural Resources, had alleged that the terms of the new gas supply agreement not only deviated from the original terms but were approved only by the RIL nominees on Reliance Natural Resources board. RIL's side of Reliance Natural Resources, however, called Chalasani's allegations as a "deliberate attempt to mislead the public in general and shareholders of RNRL and RIL in particular". When BT went to press, the two camps were still sniping at each other.

-Krishna Gopalan

NUMBERS OF NOTE

60%: Likely share of India of around 40,000 legal jobs expected to be outsourced by the US by 2010. These jobs are expected to nearly double by 2015, with India's share going up to 70%

$8.6 billion (Rs 38,700 crore): What Detroit-based auto giant General Motors reported in losses for 2005

650 million: People engaged in agriculture in India. Farm sector contributes only 22 per cent to the GDP

$1.1 billion (Rs 4,950 crore): Worldwide sales of music via the internet and mobile phones last year, almost triple 2004 sales and accounting for 6 per cent of global record companies' revenue. Music fans around the globe downloaded 420 million single tracks in 2005

200: The number of civilian aircraft in India, compared with 750 in China and more than 6,000 in the United States. Airlines flew an estimated 19 million domestic passengers in India in the year to March 2005

32%: The number of US office workers who said they have an office "spouse," with many having more than one, according to a survey by Vault Inc., a career research and consulting company. The firm's national survey of workplace romance said workplace "spousing" has surged in the last year, in part because it offers immediate intimacy without the sex or commitment

$26 million (Rs 117 crore): Money spent on security at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos

14%: The forecast growth rate of India's top 100 listed companies in the year to March 2007. The companies are projected to post slower earnings growth compared with a 26 per cent rise in the year to March 2006, according to Reuters estimates

5,160: The number of theatres in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Karnataka and Kerala together have 2,451 theatres

4.5 million: The number of mobile users India added in December 2005

Sprucing Up Spice For Sale?

Modi's Spice Telecom: Fixing it

For the first time in 18 months, Spice Telecom has been adding-and not losing-subscribers in Karnataka. The B.K. Modi-owned cellular operator, which also operates in Punjab, is the smallest player in the state, with just 3.12 lakh subscribers, compared to market leader Airtel's 2 million. Why are things suddenly looking up for Spice? That's because, three months ago, Delhi-based Modi despatched his trusted lieutenant Navin Kaul to effect a turnaround. Kaul, who did something similar for Modi in Punjab, is adding 417 cell sites to Spice's exisiting 489. This is expected to expand the telco's reach from 67 towns to 150 towns by April this year. "We are behaving like a new entrant rather than an entrenched player," says Kaul. Spice watchers, however, believe that Modi-whose run-ins with former partners Distacom and AIG are largely responsible for the company's stunted growth-may be sprucing up Spice for sale. It's no secret that Modi is looking for a strategic investor, but Kaul denies that an outright sale is likely. "Our customers and partners are confident that Spice has a great future," he says. Maxis Communications of Malaysia that recently bought into Aircel in Tamil Nadu is believed to be the most likely contender for 'strategic partnership' in Spice, although Essar, which bought BPL Communications last year, is also said to have expressed interest.

-Venkatesha Babu

NOTED

BAGGED: By Wipro, a $27 million (Rs 121.50 crore), five-year software services contract from General Motors. Wipro will be involved in development and maintenance of middleware-software that helps a variety of applications work together as if they were a single system.

WON: By Finnish telecom giant Nokia, a five-year managed services deal from Hutchison Essar to run the telco's network operations in nine circles. As part of the agreement, Nokia will absorb over 600 Hutchison Essar staff into its services business unit.

FORMED: By the state-owned Power Finance Corporation, Life Insurance Corporation, and a clutch of 10 banks (including Punjab National Bank and Oriental Bank of Commerce), a consortium for financing power projects. Named the "Power Lenders Club", the consortium promises to be a one-stop shop for all funding requirements of the power sector, including for reform projects across states.

ALLOWED: By the Supreme Court, the trial of R.S. Lodha. The Apex court dismissed the special leave petition against a Calcutta High Court order declining to stay the trial of Lodha and others for allegedly forging the will of the late Priyamvada Birla, wife of M.P. Birla. Rajinder Pansari, an associate of the Birlas, had filed a criminal case against Lodha and three others, accusing them with having committed a fraud by drafting Priyamvada's will in Lodha's favour. Rejecting the plea, the bench pointed out that this was a criminal complaint filed for the misuse of authority as administrator of property, abuse of position and grabbing property.

APPOINTED: Anil Singhvi, as Managing Director of Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd, for a period of five years on the same terms and conditions applicable to his predecessor Narotam S. Sekhsaria. Sekhsaria will now hold the posts of Vice-chairman and Non-executive Director. The appointment was made after Holderind Investments, an indirectly held wholly-owned subsidiary of Holcim, Switzerland, acquired 20 crore shares, or 14.8 per cent, from the existing promoters of Gujarat Ambuja for Rs 2,142 crore.

Kolkata to China

He was born in the UK and raised in Kolkata, but made his fortune in China. Sagnik Roy, who first went to China in the early 80s as student, today runs $600-million (Rs 2,700 crore) Yongtong Group with interests in textiles, rubber and tyre, minerals and computer hardware. Now the Beijing-based Roy, 44, is tapping opportunities back home. He has set up a joint venture with Kolkata-based Global Binary Concept to assemble PCs. "We are also exploring opportunities in tyre and textiles," says Roy, who speaks fluent Mandarin, has a Chinese wife and is awaiting membership of China's Communist Party. Great show, Comrade.

-Ritwik Mukherjee