![](grfx/176.jpg) |
NAME: Shashi Ruia (left
AGE: 62
DESIGNATION: Chairman
STATE: Essar Group |
NAME:
Ravi Ruia
AGE: 57
DESIGNATION: Vice Chairman
STATE: Essar Group |
The
Essar Group is suddenly blipping furiously on the radars of the
business press. Its 11-million-tonne oil refinery at Vadinar is
scheduled to go on stream next month; the expansion of Essar Steel's
capacity from 3 million tonnes to 4.6 million tonnes is expected
to be completed the following month; and it has announced plans
of setting up another 16-20-million-tonne oil refinery at Jamnagar
at a cost of Rs 15,000 crore. And its telecom play, and more specifically,
its high profile row with the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Group
over Hutchison Essar and BPL Communications is hogging the headlines
almost daily.
Guiding the group through all these twists
and turns are brothers Shashi and Ravi Ruia. Essar Shipping first
catapulted them into prominence in the 1980s. Then followed forays
into the steel, power, oil and gas, and telecom sectors. After
a giddy period of growth in the early-to-mid 90s, the group went
through a difficult patch. Several of the industries it was in
faced downturns. Essar Steel defaulted on its $250-million international
floating rate notes. Overkill, the media shouted, and blamed the
promoters for stretching themselves too thin. But the Brothers
Ruia rode out the storm and slowly put the business they had built
back on the rails. They complement each other well-elder brother
Shashi, who is the face of the group, manages the outside environment,
while Ravi works in the background as the planner, and fills in
the details. But their management styles are strikingly similar.
"Both are very hands-on and are very tough task masters,"
says V.G. Raghavan, Director (Finance), Essar Steel, who has worked
with the duo for close to three decades. Their hard work is paying
off. The Essar Group has emerged as India's fourth largest in
terms of assets (Rs 27,000 crore). The good times are rolling
and all their businesses are doing well. But the task before the
brothers now is to win back the confidence of the institutions
and investors. Going by the positive press they have been receiving
recently, they are already part of the way there.
|