The Hindu Business Line : Rolls Royce in talks with Reliance for gas kit supply

Mr Tim Jones, Managing Director, Rolls-Royce India (right), and Mr Brain Stanton, Director of e-learning and international training, at a press conference in Bangalore on Thursday. — G R N Somashekar

Bangalore , March 11

THE UK-based Rolls Royce has begun discussions with Reliance Industries Ltd for supply of equipment for distributing gas to end users and power generation.

Speaking to reporters here on Thursday, Mr Tim Jones, Managing Director, Rolls Royce India Ltd, said: "We are in a continuous dialogue with Reliance for equipment supply."

Rolls Royce makes gas turbines for power generation, aviation engines, marine propulsion and heavy engineering equipment for moving gas/liquefied natural gas through pipelines.

Rolls Royce has already provided such equipment at the terminal in Gujarat and for the onward pipelining facilities.

He, however, declined to go into the specifics for the negotiations with Reliance and said that no numbers have so far been discussed. But Reliance has proposed to set up a 3500-mw gas based power generation station, the world largest such project, on the outskirts of Delhi sourcing the fuel from the Krishna Godavari basin. Reliance had struck a large gas well in the KG basin in 2002 and operates a distribution zone in Delhi.

Mr Jones said Rolls Royce was also planning to expand its operations into India. These, he said, would not involve any outsourcing. Instead, the company was interested in involving Indian technical institutions in e-learning programme. This would entirely be for captive purposes, he added. The e-learning programme would be for high tech and engineering applications.

Besides, the company was also interested in tapping the engineering and software capabilities available in Bangalore for all its applications, he said.

Rolls Royce, he said, would also be supplying engines to Deccan Aviation, which has proposals to acquire seven aircraft, and had specified the RR's V2500 engines for the aircraft.

Rolls Royce already supplies engines to the existing domestic carriers, including Indian Airlines, he added. In addition, engines would be provided for the VVIP aircraft acquisition planned by the Government, which involves acquisition of five Embraer Legacy aircraft from Brazil. These are to be equipped with RR's AE 3007 series engines.

Further, he added, that Rolls Royce was negotiating with the coast guard for supply of three pollution control vessels. The total value of the contract was likely to be £15 million. However, he added, that these estimates could vary since the vessels would built in domestic shipyards. Rolls Royce would only be supplying some of the subsystems and engines required for the vessels.

Besides, Mr Jones said, the company was building the ship lifting facilities at the Karwar naval base. The total value of the contract was $33 million. About $22 million would be spent in India since all the subcontractors and materials suppliers were domestic.

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