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OLD POWER PLANTS PUT INDIA IN 11TH SLOT IN ENERGY EFFICIENCY

NEW DELHI: Germany is the global leader in energy efficiency while ageing power plants and inefficient ways of electricity generation and industrial practices put India at number 11 in the latest energy efficiency ranking of the world’s 16 largest economies.

The United States, having second highest per capita energy consumption in the world, comes at the 13th position — behind countries such as China, France, Japan, UK, Canada and Australia among others.

Besides the US, four other countries — South Korea, Russia, Brazil and Mexico — are below India in terms of indulging in inefficient ways of energy consumption.

Per-capital energy consumption of all these countries is, however, much

FUEL PRICE DISPARITY IS WIDENING WITH EVERY HIKE

MUMBAI: As states governments add layers of taxes on fuel, disparity in petrol and diesel prices across the country has reached as high as 35%, spawning a new mafia that profits by sourcing cheap and selling high

Ever wondered why you have to shell more if you refill at a petrol pump in Thane, just a few kilometers away from your regular fuel station in Navi Mumbai. Or why the fuel costs less outside city limits.

Well, if you thought differential of a few bucks across suburbs was too high, here’s a shocker: it is way too high, as much as almost 35%, when compared among states, and is widening with every price increase.

This is because some state governments are adding multitude of taxes an

FDI IN DEFENCE MAY GO UP TO 100% IF CEO IS INDIAN

New Delhi: Global defence equipment majors such as BAE Systems and Lockheed Martin could set up manufacturing units in India and bring in foreign direct investment (FDI) exceeding 49 per cent, provided the company’s chief executive officer (CEO) is Indian.

As the objective was to let only serious players enter the market, the defence FDI policy approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday categorically stated investee companies should be self-sufficient in product designing and have maintenance and life cycle support facilities for the products they manufactured here, said a senior department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) official.

The Union Cabinet had approved an increase in the composite foreign investme

Meraas Holding plans IPO

Dubai government-owned property developer Meraas Holding is considering selling shares to the public as the regional real-estate market continues its rapid recovery from the financial crisis, according to three people familiar with the matter. The real-estate company, which has close links to Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, recently sent a request for proposals to banks who have until September to reply, said one of […]

BILL TO REFORM POWER SECTOR IN WINTER SESSION

NEW DELHI: The government will bring a Bill, amending the Central Electricity Act, in winter session of Parliament to improve the tariff policy and regulations in the power sector. The power ministry is working out different tariff structure for different times of the day for easy availability of power for maximum hours in electricity deficit areas. It will soon consult states over the issue as the tariff matter comes under the states’ domain.

Besides, the government has decided to promote domestic power companies to help increase solar power generation in the country. Announcing these decisions in Rajya Sabha, power minister Piyush Goyal said the government will allow only 100% indigenous domestic companies to participate in the

ADANI GROUP IN TALKS WITH INDIAN OIL FOR RS 30,000 CRORE MUNDRA REFINERY JOINT VENTURE

MUMBAI: The Adani Group and Indian Oil Corporation are in talks to build a Rs 30,000-crore joint venture refinery at Mundra, which would give Gautam Adani an entry into the oil sector while the state-run company would get land port facilities for the proposed export-focused unit.

The proposed 30-million-tonne refinery at Mundra will make Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s native state, Gujarat, a bigger energy hub. It already has refineries of Reliance Industries, Essar Oil and Indian Oil, apart from two LNG terminals and the country’s biggest city-gas distribution network.

Industry sources said Gautam Adani has held initial talks with top executives at IOC and offered around 3,500-4,000 acres of land for th

US EYES BIG-TICKET ARMS DEALS DURING HAGEL’S VISIT

NEW DELHI: The Obama administration will push for the stalled mega deals for M-777 ultra-light howitzers and Javelin anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) when US defence secretary Chuck Hagel comes visiting from Thursday.

There will be talks on ways to further bolster the already expansive strategic partnership, ranging from sharing of intelligence and cooperation on counter-terrorism to joint combat exercises, but the cornerstone will remain the US offer to provide India with “ground-breaking” weapon technology on par with its closest allies.

Having bagged defence deals worth over $10 billion over the last decade, the US is obviously hungry for more. Of the different co-development and co-prod

Qatar raises foreign ownership limit

Qatar’s emir has issued a law providing for foreign investors to own up to 49 percent of listed Qatari companies, part of reforms to expand the stock market and develop the financial industry. “The law stipulates that non-Qatari investors are allowed to own no more than 49 percent of the shares of Qatari shareholding companies listed on Qatar Exchange,” the official Qatar News Agency (QNA) said on […]

You can rely on Boris Johnson to put on a show

Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, announces that he will stand for Parliament in 2015 Photo: Getty Images “We need someone widely seen as a prime minister in waiting. Oh boy, have you kept me waiting.” Ken Clarke used this line to appeal – in vain – to the Conservative conference in 2005 as he ran for the leadership. But, oh boy, has another possible prime minister in […]

iPhone 6 Event: September 9

by Christopher Morris Apple’s next generation flagship smartphone should hit the stores in early October After months of speculation, rumor and leaks, it finally seems that the iPhone 6 may be about to be unveiled. The Wall Street Journal is reporting today that Apple will unveil its next-generation smartphone at a special event on September 9. Apple follows typical strategy Although Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is currently declining […]

Retirement Strategy: Preparing For The Unknowns

By Regarded Solutions: For many years now, I have been preaching about dividend growth investing to just about any investor who cared to listen. The foundation for a more secure financial future can be found by investing in mega cap, blue chip, dividend growth stocks. While no investment strategy could ever be perfect for everyone, dividend growth investing certainly has been shown to produce increasing income during […]

JOINT SESSION NOT POSSIBLE NOW ON INSURANCE BILL

NEW DELHI: The central government’s worries on the Insurance Bill aggravated on Tuesday with Congress accusing it of adopting double standards on the issue and dismissing threats from the treasury benches that a joint session may be convened, forcing BJP ministers to knock on the doors of parties like SP and BSP to muster the numbers in the Rajya Sabha. Congress sources maintained the government was reportedly keen on passing the insurance bill in Parliament in this session so that Prime Minister Narendra Modi can showcase it to the US during his visit in September and hence wants to hurry through the process without sending it to a select committee of the Rajya Sabha. BJP leaders, on the other hand, alleged Congress was playing politics on

POWER MINISTRY MULLS FUND TO FINANCE HYDRO PROJECTS

NEW DELHI: The power ministry plans to create a fund to provide long-term finances to hydropower developers, and aims to play an active role in resolving state level sues that are blocking such projects.

“Hydropower did not get the desired attention as concerned ministries and departments were working in silos, and problems with states and central authorities could be resolved.

However, the new government is working in tandem as a team and we are hopeful to resolve pending issues to give conducive environment to hydropower sector,” power, coal and renewable energy minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday.

He said one of his first projects Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated was the

RAJASTHAN GOVERNMENT BANKS ON HPCL DATA TO NULLIFY LATTER’S CLAIM

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan government while censuring previous Congress government for ignoring state’s interests while signing memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), has banked on the HPCL’s own consulting firm, SBI Caps’ report.

Chief minister, Vasundhara Raje, during her budget speech, said that based on appraisal report, the project will earn revenue of more than 68,000 crore within 15 years, from the day of production.

According to government officials, the data was cited from the report prepared by HPCL-appointed consulting firm, SBI Caps. Riding on these figures, the government is firming its stand on renegotiating the terms. “These facts came

FireEye’s (FEYE) CEO Dave DeWalt on Q2 2014 Results – Earnings Call Transcript

FireEye, Inc. (NASDAQ:FEYE) Q2 2014 Earnings Conference Call August 5, 2014 17:00 ET Executives Kate Patterson – Vice President, Investor Relations Dave DeWalt – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Sheridan – Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Analysts Rick Sherlund – Nomura Rob Owens – Pacific Crest Securities Matthew Niknam – Goldman Sachs Daniel Ives – FBR Capital Markets Walter Pritchard – Citi Gary Powell […]

MINISTRY WORKING ON SWEETENING BANKRUPTCY PILL FOR SICK UNITS

NEW DELHI: The government is working on developing a bankruptcy framework to offer easier exit routes to sick companies while helping revive those with viable options, said Kalraj Mishra, the new minister for micro small & medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Another issue the ministry is dealing with is availability of land for industrial units. It is asking states to create land pools by listing out all unused land available with them.

“Entrepreneur bankruptcy framework will be developed to enable easy exit of sick units,” Mishra told ET. “It has been a major demand of the MSME sector for a very long time. The details will be worked out soon.”

SMEs employ close to 40 per cen

GOVT OPEN TO MINOR CHANGES IN INSURANCE BILL

New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said the government was open to accommodating minor modifications to the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2008, so that it could be passed in the current session of Parliament. He also said calling a joint session of Parliament was a real option if the Bill was defeated in one of the Houses. After an all-party meeting failed to break the deadlock on the issue between the government and Opposition, Jaitley on Monday reached out to the Congress. But the Congress continued to insist the Bill be sent to a select committee of Parliament, as it now was much changed from the one the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had tabled in the Rajya Sabha. The party added it would be willing to support the legisl

Op-Ed Contributor: Atef Abu Saif: Life and Death in the Gaza Strip

Op-Ed Contributor Eight Days in Gaza: A Wartime Diary By ATEF ABU SAIF August 4, 2014 Sunday, July 27 For the last two hours we’ve heard nothing but sonic booms and the sound of rockets and mortars. Shells have fallen on our street a few hundred yards from my father-in-law’s house, where my wife and I, and our five kids, are staying, and on the street behind us. My wife, […]

Family tradition of building UAE palaces, mosques and forts kept alive

Abdul Rahman Qayed’s hands are smooth for a man who works in the construction trade. The reason, he says, is simple. For much of the past 28 years they’ve been covered in clay. Along with the date palm, coral stone, gypsum and straw, clay is one of the key materials with which Abdul Rahman, 52, and his 58-year-old brother, Mohammed Saleh, ply their trade. “We use the […]

India leads in BRIC investments into UAE

|TAP Special| Inflows from BRIC countries, including India and China, into the UAE have surpassed those from the Middle East and Africa region and India leads the other BRIC countries in this respect. According to a report of the Fortress Investments, the UAE is attracting significant capital from the BRIC countries and this is the result of progressive government measures and global partnerships. This significant revelation comes […]

China move to allow private oil imports has price implications

China is poised to allow more private companies to directly import oil, a move that will have only a marginal impact on crude markets but may have a disproportionate impact on fuel oil prices. The vast majority of China’s crude imports come via the two state giants, PetroChina and Sinopec , which account for about 90 percent of the imports of the world’s second-largest oil user. Last […]

INTERNATIONAL NORMS MAY BE ADOPTED TO REJIG FDI POLICY

The government is proposing a major overhaul of its foreign direct investment (FDI) policy as part of the Narendra Modi-led administration’s plan to woo overseas investors and improve ease of doing business in India, which ranks at a lowly 134 out of 189 global economies in this respect, according to the World Bank.

The government is looking to adopt the international practice of linking policy with industrial codes to ensure foreign investors won’t have to wade through complicated press notes or circulars to decipher the policy for a sector.

“Discussions are on. There is merit in seeding the industrial codes with the FDI policy,” said a government official aware of the deliberations. The mov

Lost world of an artist caught in the crossfire

Britain declared war 100 years ago tonight , but some other countries had already begun. On July 29, a Hungarian painter, Béla Zombory-Moldován, was on holiday at the seaside resort of Novi, on the Croatian coast, then part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Suffering from a hangover, he had slipped out in the early morning for a swim from the spit. The bathing attendant approached, and told him, […]

Advantage Dubai: Singapore is losing shopping charm

|TAP Special| Dubai stands to gain from a changing shopping profile of Singapore as strengthening exchange rate, rising labour costs and sales tax are putting foreign shoppers at a disadvantage in the island city state. Reports already suggest a marked drop in tourist arrivals, particularly from China. Dubai retailer Al-Futtaim has closed its stores for brands including Shana and Vince Camuto in Singapore, and is closing Mango […]