Saturday, August 7, 2010
» Indian IT hit by US visa bill
Headwinds from US continue to blow southwards for the Indian IT industry. The US Senate has passed a bill to raise the H1B visa fees. The H1B visa (work visa for US) fees have been nearly doubled from US$ 2,000 to US$ 4,500. The Indian IT industry derives nearly 45-50% of its revenues from its onsite work resources. As per NASSCOM, this will increase the annual visa cost for the Indian IT industry by US$ 200-250 m annually. This will reduce the cost arbitrage that India offers to its clients in US. However, Indian IT firms cannot afford to miss the US markets. It is after all worth almost US$ 30 bn. But it will certainly impact their costs. Interestingly, India's working in the US already pay over US$ 1 bn annually in social security for which we do not get any benefits.
» A homegrown competition to Visa, Mastercard
90% of the time when anyone uses their credit card, they will be using the services of Visa or Mastercard. Whenever 'plastic money' is used at ATMs, malls or for online payments, banks have to pay facilitation fees to these giants for the processing of such transactions.
Well, these two American heavyweights may soon be facing a new competitor. IndiaPay, a new government backed payment processing platform will be launched in the next two years. This new service will help bring down transaction costs significantly. Its development is also being promoted by major Indian and foreign banks in India, as well as the banking regulator. Currently, around 40 m credit and debit cards are in circulation in India. This is only set to boom in the next few years. So, it looks like 'Visa Power' and 'for everything else there is Mastercard' will soon be replaced by a new 'desi' flavor.
Well, these two American heavyweights may soon be facing a new competitor. IndiaPay, a new government backed payment processing platform will be launched in the next two years. This new service will help bring down transaction costs significantly. Its development is also being promoted by major Indian and foreign banks in India, as well as the banking regulator. Currently, around 40 m credit and debit cards are in circulation in India. This is only set to boom in the next few years. So, it looks like 'Visa Power' and 'for everything else there is Mastercard' will soon be replaced by a new 'desi' flavor.
» The biggest hurdle to FDI in India
If India has to grow by 10% plus on a sustainable basis, there has to be considerable development in the country's infrastructure and industry. This also requires substantial long term foreign capital. Thus making foreign direct investments (FDIs) all the more important. But the challenges for this capital to keep pouring in are immense. And one such challenge is land acquisition.
Take the POSCO project in Orissa for example. The state government has been ordered to stop buying land for South Korean steelmaker POSCO's proposed plant. It must be noted that five years ago POSCO signed an initial pact with the Orissa state government to build a plant with a capacity of 12 m tonnes a year at an investment of more than US$ 10 bn. This has now hit a roadblock due to tough forest laws and stiff opposition from the local people. These issues are not new. They have hampered several projects in the past. One needs to look no further than the Tata Nano fiasco in Singur, West Bengal for evidence of this. Thus, the government will have to ensure that problems such as these do not get out of hand lest FDIs begin to slowdown or halt in the future.
Take the POSCO project in Orissa for example. The state government has been ordered to stop buying land for South Korean steelmaker POSCO's proposed plant. It must be noted that five years ago POSCO signed an initial pact with the Orissa state government to build a plant with a capacity of 12 m tonnes a year at an investment of more than US$ 10 bn. This has now hit a roadblock due to tough forest laws and stiff opposition from the local people. These issues are not new. They have hampered several projects in the past. One needs to look no further than the Tata Nano fiasco in Singur, West Bengal for evidence of this. Thus, the government will have to ensure that problems such as these do not get out of hand lest FDIs begin to slowdown or halt in the future.
Orissa appeals against halt order on POSCO
Saturday August 7,2010, 02:00 PM
MUMBAI (Reuters) - The chief minister of Orissa has appealed to the prime minister to allow South Korea's POSCO<005490.KS> to continue work on a giant iron ore project after the environment ministry ordered a halt.
Stopping work at this stage on a proposed $12 billion plant would be counterproductive and affect the investment climate in the country, Naveen Patnaik said in a letter to the prime minister, according to a senior state official, who asked not to be named as he is not authorised to speak to the media.
POSCO, the world's third-largest steelmaker, wants to mine iron ore in the Khandadharnear region of Orissa and signed a memorandum of understanding in June 2005 for the plant, which was to be built in three phases by 2016, with production scheduled to begin by the end of 2011 at the completion of the first phase.
But the project, touted as India's biggest foreign direct investment, has been repeatedly delayed due to protests by farmers who fear losing their land and livelihood.
On Friday, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said the state had been directed to stop all work on the project, including land acquisition, as a special committee had found it violated the forest rights act that seeks to protect forest land and settlers.
Ramesh, who has scrapped or delayed clearance for some 100 mining projects, wants to protect India's remaining forest land as part of a strategy to fight climate change.
But that could mean giving up mining about a quarter of the country's mineral reserves.
POSCO required 4,000 acres (1,600 hectares) of land in the eastern state, of which 2,900 acres is forested. Final clearances for acquiring the forested land had been given, but there has been little progress in land acquisition because of the protests.
Top steelmaker ArcelorMittal is also battling delays from allocation of mining licences and protests by villagers in eastern India.
POSCO announced in January it planned to invest more than $7 billion in a new plant in southern India.
MUMBAI (Reuters) - The chief minister of Orissa has appealed to the prime minister to allow South Korea's POSCO<005490.KS> to continue work on a giant iron ore project after the environment ministry ordered a halt.
Stopping work at this stage on a proposed $12 billion plant would be counterproductive and affect the investment climate in the country, Naveen Patnaik said in a letter to the prime minister, according to a senior state official, who asked not to be named as he is not authorised to speak to the media.
POSCO, the world's third-largest steelmaker, wants to mine iron ore in the Khandadharnear region of Orissa and signed a memorandum of understanding in June 2005 for the plant, which was to be built in three phases by 2016, with production scheduled to begin by the end of 2011 at the completion of the first phase.
But the project, touted as India's biggest foreign direct investment, has been repeatedly delayed due to protests by farmers who fear losing their land and livelihood.
On Friday, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said the state had been directed to stop all work on the project, including land acquisition, as a special committee had found it violated the forest rights act that seeks to protect forest land and settlers.
Ramesh, who has scrapped or delayed clearance for some 100 mining projects, wants to protect India's remaining forest land as part of a strategy to fight climate change.
But that could mean giving up mining about a quarter of the country's mineral reserves.
POSCO required 4,000 acres (1,600 hectares) of land in the eastern state, of which 2,900 acres is forested. Final clearances for acquiring the forested land had been given, but there has been little progress in land acquisition because of the protests.
Top steelmaker ArcelorMittal is also battling delays from allocation of mining licences and protests by villagers in eastern India.
POSCO announced in January it planned to invest more than $7 billion in a new plant in southern India.
Solar power gets its day in the sun with national mission support
Saturday August 7,2010, 03:27 AM
After the recent release of the guidelines to operationalise the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, the solar energy industry is shining bright with optimism. As new players scramble to make the first moves, the incumbents are determined to stay ahead. While some industry players are scouting overseas for technology, others are hunting for land back home. Every company seems keen to stake a claim to its share of the limelight. All eyes are on the first grid-connected 5-mw solar thermal plant by Acme Tele Power, expected to come up in Rajasthan by September.
The solar mission envisages setting up of 1,300 mw of solar power, including 1,100 mw of grid-connected solar power, 100 mw small-grid and 200 mw off-grid power generation, by 2013. The overall target is to set up 20,000 mw by 2022 in three phases, up from 12 mw of grid connected interactive solar power as on end-June 2010.
Government support has fuelled a spate of initiatives in this sector. RPG Group's power utility CESC is developing a 200-mw solar power project for Rs 2,000 crore near Bikaner in Rajasthan, for which it has acquired 300 acres. Kalyani Group flagship Bharat Forge (BHARATFOR.NS : 336.1 +1.85 ) is planning to install 100 mw of solar power. 40 mw of solar power is being set up by Adani Power in Gujarat. Yash Birla Group's Birla Power Solutions is targeting 125 mw of solar power in Haryana, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan. Meanwhile, public sector NTPC has targetted generating 300 mw solar power by March 2014. Referring to the indicative list, Anil Lakhina, chairman and managing director, Forum for the Advancement of Solar Thermal, an industry association, says: "The profile of players is impressive. It's time for serious business now."
Committed to help the industry achieve grid parity by 2022, the mission has named NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam to buy power from private developers. For the first year (2010-2011), the Central Regulatory Electricity Commission has fixed the rate for photo-voltaic at Rs 17.91 per unit and for solar thermal at Rs 15.31 per unit. Besides, the power ministry will contribute "relatively cheaper" 1,000 mw of thermal power for bundling with "relatively expensive" solar power to be sold to distribution utilities in order to reduce its cost for end-consumers.
Rajasthan is a favourite destination for solar power producers. Naresh Pal Gangwar, CMD, Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation says: "Rajasthan is scoring not only because of good solar radiation and the number of sunny days, but also because of availability of unutilised land in desert areas at cheap rates." Eleven projects with a total capacity of 66 mw cleared by the Centre are expected to come up in in the state in the next year and a half.
Existing solar players are consolidating and expanding. While Tata BP Solar is planning to increase its photo-voltaic cell manufacturing capacity to 180 mw from 84 mw, Moser Baer (MOSERBAER.NS : 64.55 -2.15 ) is expanding capacity to 190 mw from 100 mw. Rajiv Arya, CEO, solar business, Moser Baer India says: "These are exciting times. The government has done its job. It's now up to us to make the most of it to usher in a solar revolution in the country."
Each company is charting its own course. SunBorne Energy, a solar thermal power developer planning solar power plants of 50 mw each in Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan to begin with, is focusing on indigenous technology. James Abraham, MD & CEO, SunBorne Energy says: "We are keen to add value and cut costs by using indigenous technology."
It's also time to test radical ideas. Norway's Scatec Solar has just set up a 8.7-kWp photo-voltaic power plant and a mini-grid to provide energy to 70 houses in Rampura, Jhansi in Bundelkhand. While Development Alternatives, an NGO, did the groundwork, Bergen Group of Companies executed the project. Rajinder Kumar, CMD, Bergen says: "We need to look at replicating and scaling up such pilot projects."
It's not only manufacturers and developers who are getting their act together. Services providers too are working overtime to tap into the emerging opportunity. While Germany's TUV Rheinland is setting up its seventh worldwide lab for testing solar modules and systems in Bangalore at an investment of 2 million euros, 3TIER, a renewable energy information provider, has launched its proprietary solar prospecting and assessment tools for developers to assess availability and variability of solar radiation in India.
Solar energy events in the country, too, are witnessing renewed interest from industry players from across the world. The recently concluded three-day Solarcon India 2010 in Hyderabad attracted the who's who of the solar PV industry. Says Priyadarshini Sanjay, MD, Mercom Communications India, a subsidiary of clean energy communication consultancy Mercom Capital Group: "The sentiment has improved a lot since the last event and industry players want the government to set even more ambitious targets."
Observers expect the improved sentiment to light up the second edition of Intersolar India, an international solar industry exhibition to be held in in Mumbai December. Conferences are being supplemented by workshops too. The Confederation of Indian Industry is holding workshops on 'Setting up a Grid Connected Solar PV Power Plant' in Delhi and on 'Enabling Financing of Solar Power Projects' in Mumbai this month.
While older conferences get better global traction, first-timers too are riding the optimistic sentiment to book their slot in the newly expanded space. Belen Gallego, founder and director of UK-based CSP Today, is gung-ho about her 1st Concentrated Solar Thermal Power Summit to be held in September in Delhi. Seeing the kind of draw solar energy is getting, even renewable energy events like the Delhi International Renewable Energy Conference (DIREC-2010) to be held in October in Delhi and the International Congress on Renewable Energy (ICORE-2010) to be held in December in Chandigarh are focusing more on solar energy.
Rajneesh Khattar, vice-president, Exhibitions India Group, which is managing DIREC-2010 says: "Thanks to the National Solar Mission, the response from solar power industry is overwhelming and it bodes well for the economy." Adds Jagat S Jawa, director general, Solar Energy Society of India, which is organising ICORE-2010: "Solar is not just the flavour of the season, but is hopefully going to be a permanent favourite." Now, all eyes are focused on achieving the modest target of the first phase of the National Solar Mission. Its achievement opens the gate to attempting the ambitious overall target.
Source: Indian Express Finance
After the recent release of the guidelines to operationalise the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, the solar energy industry is shining bright with optimism. As new players scramble to make the first moves, the incumbents are determined to stay ahead. While some industry players are scouting overseas for technology, others are hunting for land back home. Every company seems keen to stake a claim to its share of the limelight. All eyes are on the first grid-connected 5-mw solar thermal plant by Acme Tele Power, expected to come up in Rajasthan by September.
The solar mission envisages setting up of 1,300 mw of solar power, including 1,100 mw of grid-connected solar power, 100 mw small-grid and 200 mw off-grid power generation, by 2013. The overall target is to set up 20,000 mw by 2022 in three phases, up from 12 mw of grid connected interactive solar power as on end-June 2010.
Government support has fuelled a spate of initiatives in this sector. RPG Group's power utility CESC is developing a 200-mw solar power project for Rs 2,000 crore near Bikaner in Rajasthan, for which it has acquired 300 acres. Kalyani Group flagship Bharat Forge (BHARATFOR.NS : 336.1 +1.85 ) is planning to install 100 mw of solar power. 40 mw of solar power is being set up by Adani Power in Gujarat. Yash Birla Group's Birla Power Solutions is targeting 125 mw of solar power in Haryana, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan. Meanwhile, public sector NTPC has targetted generating 300 mw solar power by March 2014. Referring to the indicative list, Anil Lakhina, chairman and managing director, Forum for the Advancement of Solar Thermal, an industry association, says: "The profile of players is impressive. It's time for serious business now."
Committed to help the industry achieve grid parity by 2022, the mission has named NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam to buy power from private developers. For the first year (2010-2011), the Central Regulatory Electricity Commission has fixed the rate for photo-voltaic at Rs 17.91 per unit and for solar thermal at Rs 15.31 per unit. Besides, the power ministry will contribute "relatively cheaper" 1,000 mw of thermal power for bundling with "relatively expensive" solar power to be sold to distribution utilities in order to reduce its cost for end-consumers.
Rajasthan is a favourite destination for solar power producers. Naresh Pal Gangwar, CMD, Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation says: "Rajasthan is scoring not only because of good solar radiation and the number of sunny days, but also because of availability of unutilised land in desert areas at cheap rates." Eleven projects with a total capacity of 66 mw cleared by the Centre are expected to come up in in the state in the next year and a half.
Existing solar players are consolidating and expanding. While Tata BP Solar is planning to increase its photo-voltaic cell manufacturing capacity to 180 mw from 84 mw, Moser Baer (MOSERBAER.NS : 64.55 -2.15 ) is expanding capacity to 190 mw from 100 mw. Rajiv Arya, CEO, solar business, Moser Baer India says: "These are exciting times. The government has done its job. It's now up to us to make the most of it to usher in a solar revolution in the country."
Each company is charting its own course. SunBorne Energy, a solar thermal power developer planning solar power plants of 50 mw each in Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan to begin with, is focusing on indigenous technology. James Abraham, MD & CEO, SunBorne Energy says: "We are keen to add value and cut costs by using indigenous technology."
It's also time to test radical ideas. Norway's Scatec Solar has just set up a 8.7-kWp photo-voltaic power plant and a mini-grid to provide energy to 70 houses in Rampura, Jhansi in Bundelkhand. While Development Alternatives, an NGO, did the groundwork, Bergen Group of Companies executed the project. Rajinder Kumar, CMD, Bergen says: "We need to look at replicating and scaling up such pilot projects."
It's not only manufacturers and developers who are getting their act together. Services providers too are working overtime to tap into the emerging opportunity. While Germany's TUV Rheinland is setting up its seventh worldwide lab for testing solar modules and systems in Bangalore at an investment of 2 million euros, 3TIER, a renewable energy information provider, has launched its proprietary solar prospecting and assessment tools for developers to assess availability and variability of solar radiation in India.
Solar energy events in the country, too, are witnessing renewed interest from industry players from across the world. The recently concluded three-day Solarcon India 2010 in Hyderabad attracted the who's who of the solar PV industry. Says Priyadarshini Sanjay, MD, Mercom Communications India, a subsidiary of clean energy communication consultancy Mercom Capital Group: "The sentiment has improved a lot since the last event and industry players want the government to set even more ambitious targets."
Observers expect the improved sentiment to light up the second edition of Intersolar India, an international solar industry exhibition to be held in in Mumbai December. Conferences are being supplemented by workshops too. The Confederation of Indian Industry is holding workshops on 'Setting up a Grid Connected Solar PV Power Plant' in Delhi and on 'Enabling Financing of Solar Power Projects' in Mumbai this month.
While older conferences get better global traction, first-timers too are riding the optimistic sentiment to book their slot in the newly expanded space. Belen Gallego, founder and director of UK-based CSP Today, is gung-ho about her 1st Concentrated Solar Thermal Power Summit to be held in September in Delhi. Seeing the kind of draw solar energy is getting, even renewable energy events like the Delhi International Renewable Energy Conference (DIREC-2010) to be held in October in Delhi and the International Congress on Renewable Energy (ICORE-2010) to be held in December in Chandigarh are focusing more on solar energy.
Rajneesh Khattar, vice-president, Exhibitions India Group, which is managing DIREC-2010 says: "Thanks to the National Solar Mission, the response from solar power industry is overwhelming and it bodes well for the economy." Adds Jagat S Jawa, director general, Solar Energy Society of India, which is organising ICORE-2010: "Solar is not just the flavour of the season, but is hopefully going to be a permanent favourite." Now, all eyes are focused on achieving the modest target of the first phase of the National Solar Mission. Its achievement opens the gate to attempting the ambitious overall target.
Source: Indian Express Finance
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