- Wednesday, March 12, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
HERE are news in brief related to Indian economy and business for Thursday, June 13, 2024:
German auto-major Mercedes Benz will make an investment of Rs 3,000 crore (£282 million) in the western state of Maharashtra, its Industries minister Uday Samant said on Thursday. In a post on X, Samant said while on a tour of Germany recently, he met top executives of Mercedes Benz on Thursday and discussed investment opportunities in the state. “Mercedes Benz will invest Rs 3,000 crore in Maharashtra this year. This will help create employment opportunities in the state,” he said. The development could give a shot in the arm, ahead of assembly elections, to the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party-Nationalist Congress Party government which has been battling charges from the opposition that Maharashtra is losing big-ticket industrial projects to other states, including Gujarat.
India’s aviation sector has improved a lot under the leadership of prime minister Narendra Modi, said Sumesh Patel, president of SITA, Asia Pacific. Speaking to Asian News International, he also emphasized that the Modi government’s focus on aviation has led to a considerable increase in the number of airports, ensuring broader access to air travel for the Indian population. “The airports have increased under the leadership of the Modi government, they have a very large focus on aviation. And that is clearly making sure that every individual or every person in India could fly”, said Patel. SITA is a global company that provides information and telecommunications solutions to the air transport industry.
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has issued a notice to airline SpiceJet over an insolvency plea filed by Engine Lease Finance BV, an aircraft engine lessor of the debt-ridden air carrier. The single-member NCLT bench has asked SpiceJet to file a response over the Engine Lease Finance (ELF) plea and directed listing the matter for hearing on August 2, 2024. During the proceedings, SpiceJet raised objections over the maintainability of the plea, in which ELF has claimed a payment default of over $12 million (around Rs 100 crore or £9.3 million). ELF has leased eight engines to SpiceJet. Along with interest and rental, ELF has claimed around USD 16 million dues. Earlier, the matter was listed before a Delhi-based bench of the NCLT on May 29.
Ambuja Cements, an Adani group firm, on Thursday announced the acquisition of Penna Cement Industries Ltd (PCIL) at an enterprise value of Rs 10,422 crore (£979 million). A binding agreement for the acquisition has been signed, which will add 14 MTPA (million tonnes per annum) capacity to Adani group, taking the total tally to 89 MTPA. Ambuja will acquire 100 per cent shares of PCIL from its existing promoter group P Pratap Reddy and family. PCIL has 14 MTPA capacity in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Rajasthan (under-construction). Besides, it has surplus clinker at Jodhpur plant in Rajasthan which will support additional 3 MTPA cement grinding capacity, said a statement.
An Indian engineering firm and a German defence major have come together to supply 12 indigenous low-frequency variable depth Sonar systems for an indigenous project. A subsidiary of the German defence conglomerate Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, ATLAS ELEKTRONIK GmbH partnered with CFF Fluid Control Ltd for the supply of 12 indigenous low-frequency variable depth sonar systems, marking a notable step towards enhancing the anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities of the Indian Navy, utilizing indigenous resources and technology. These towed sonars are being provided for use on Indian Navy Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) vessels via Kolkata-based shipyard Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd and Kochi-based Cochin Shipyard Limited.
The government of the eastern state of West Bengal is advocating for a more significant role of the industry in the decision-making processes of its nodal agency, West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC), to expedite and enhance the investment climate in the state, industry sources said on Thursday. The state’s chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, during a closed-door meeting with industrialists during the day, called for an increased industry presence in the WBIDC. The exact details of the plan in this regard were not immediately known and there is no official confirmation about the move.
(With agencies)
