ONGC, Coal India and M&M to see some action today

ONGC Videsh (OVL) -led consortium is close to winning $5 billion rights to develop Iran’s Farzad-B gas field and convert the gas produced from it into LNG for shipping to countries like India. The gas produced from the field will be converted into liquefied natural gas (LNG) for export to consuming nations like India. OVL, the overseas arm of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), has proposed to build one LNG train of 6 million tonnes a year. A consortium of OVL, Oil India (OIL) and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) had discovered the 12.8 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves in the Farsi block in 2008. The discovery was named Farzad-B.

Coal India (CIL) will invest Rs 57,000 crore by 2020 to more than double annual production to 1 billion tonnes. The state-run coal behemoth produced 494 million tonnes of coal in 2014-15. Coal India will invest about Rs 6,000 crore in 2015-16 and Rs 8,282 crore in 2016-17. During 2017-18 and 2018-19, investments are slated to jump to Rs 14,539 crore and Rs 14,635 crore, respectively. In 2019-20, the last year of this planning module, Coal India will invest Rs 13,529 crore. The robust cash reserve position of the company, is in fact a positive for the company because large global institutions have either stopped financing coal projects or are in the process of reducing their exposure in the sector.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), India’s leading SUV manufacturer, has reported 8.07% rise in its production to 41,317 units in November 2015 as compared to 38,231 units in same month last year. Further, the company’s auto sales numbers stood at 41,590 units during November 2015 as against 34,292 units during November 2014, registering a growth of 21.28%.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a leading IT services, consulting and business solutions organization, has announced that IDFC Bank has selected TCS BaNCS for core banking, a move that will enable it to offer next generation banking services that are more personalized, convenient and faster. IDFC Bank started using TCS BaNCS’ solution from October 1 at 23 branches. The core banking solution equips IDFC Bank with a flexible, easy-to-scale system that will help it deliver a differentiated customer experience. In about nine months, IDFC Bank has implemented solutions for core banking, corporate loan origination, financial inclusion and global limits and exposure management (GLEM) from the TCS BaNCS suite and has integrated them with a host of additional systems within the bank.

Jet Airways will resume its full domestic schedule starting Tuesday with 78 flights to and from Chennai, connecting Tamil Nadu’s capital city with the rest of India. The company has been assessing the situation round the clock, working closely with its team on the ground, and has fully mobilized its resources to bring back normalcy to the travelling public in and around Chennai. Jet Airways’ call centre has been reinforced with additional resources to provide priority assistance to guests impacted by the floods. 

Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) has taken all necessary steps to make up for the shortfall in production and power generation, as the mining activities take a hit following excessive rainfall. Neyveli region received a rainfall of around 408 mm in 8 hours on November 9, 2015, the highest since the inception of the company in 1956. There has been almost persistent rain since November 8, resulting in flooding of mines and suspension of mining operations and lower power generation. The power generations in thermal power station in Barsingsar, Rajasthan and in Tuticorin power project of NLC Tamil Nadu Power are operating as usual.

Auto-rickshaw aggregator Jugnoo, which counts Paytm and Freecharge CEO Kunal Shah among its investors, has tied up with Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Piaggio to help secure easy financing for auto rickshaws. The new financing offer will be rolled out in Chandigarh, Jaipur, Gurgaon and Indore in the first phase. The new auto rickshaws purchased through this scheme will be registered with Jugnoo that will help the auto drivers to cut down on their down time, resulting in additional revenue.

Software services giant Infosys will expand its operations in Ireland, doubling the number of staff in the country to 500 in three years and setting up its first product-centric research and development centre outside India. The expansion will see the Bangalore-headquartered firm create up to 95 roles at its first dedicated product-centric research and development (R&D) centre outside India, and open a second Irish facility to house up to 155 people who will provide IT services to Infosys clients. Infosys intends to develop new technologies and support innovation in global financial institutions as part of the expansion plans.

The problems facing Ashok Leyland’s joint ventures are forcing the company to review its investment plans. Over the past one year, its partnerships with Japan’s Nissan for light commercial vehicles and with US-based John Deere for earth moving equipment have been gasping for growth. The company has now decided to write off nearly Rs 382 crore in the two ventures, and is evaluating whether to continue with the partnerships or not. The joint ventures were set up between 2007 and 2009 to beat the cyclical nature of the company’s main business of trucks and buses, but the plan, after showing initial promise, fizzled out.