CORPORATE DISPUTES
Birlas' earlier wills take centrestage
KHAITAN & Co, lawyers for the Birlas in their legal battle against Mr R.S. Lodha, on Tuesday sprang a surprise by producing before the media copies of wills written by the late Birlas. The first set of two wills were each executed in 1981, ... More

Birlas seek handover of MP Birla group assets
THE Birla-Lodha spat took a new turn today with Khaitan & Co, the legal firm hired by the Birlas, filing a probate application for two wills of MP Birla and his wife signed in 1982 at the Calcutta High Court. The Birlas have also asked for an ... More

$700-m Hazira LNG terminal — Shell, Essar lock horns over equity position
The bone of contention is Shell's decision to go solo at Hazira and keep out its bid partner, Essar, from exercising its option to take a 50 per cent equity position in the project. More

AWARDS & HONOURS

CORPORATE BONDS
ICRA downgrades Samtel NCD programme rating
ICRA has downgraded the rating assigned to the Rs 25-crore long term NCD programme of Samtel Colour Ltd from LBBB-Plus to LBBB. According to an ICRA press release, the revised rating indicates moderate safety. "However, the relative degree of ... More

RESTRUCTURING
Willard India defers bifurcation of company
THE management of the ailing Willard India Ltd has delayed the proposed bifurcation of the company into its two businesses, namely jute and sugar. The board of directors had taken this decision almost a year ago but till date nothing has been ... More

MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
GAIL acquires 15 pc stake in Natgas of Egypt
GAIL (India) Ltd has informed the BSE that it has acquired a 15 per cent participating interest in National Gas Company (Natgas) of Egypt at a price of $19 million. Natgas is the largest private local distribution company for natural gas in ... More

Post-acquisition by Charterhouse, Lason India business set to rise
THE Indian subsidiary of US-based Lason Inc is likely to get increased business following the acquisition of the parent by an affiliate of Charterhouse Group Inc, an American private equity firm that manages over $1.3 billion in ... More

LN Mittal group acquires steel co in Bosnia
THE LN Mittal group on Wednesday announced the acquisition of majority stake in BH Steel of Bosnia. The group has completed negotiations with the Government of the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Kuwaiti Investment Agency to acquire ... More

`Aprilia may pick up stake in Hero Motors'
THE collaboration between Hero Motors and Aprilia of Italy for manufacture of scooterettes and scooters may eventually end up with the Italian company acquiring an equity stake in the Indian company. According to Mr Cyriac K. Jacob, ... More

TRADE & LABOUR UNIONS
Export unit decries stir threat
VISAKHAPATNAM: The management of Synergies Dooray Automotive Ltd, a 100 per EOU in the Visakhapatnam Special Economic Zone manufacturing aluminium alloy wheels, has criticised the strike notice served by the employees' union, which has ... More

ALLIANCES & JOINT VENTURES
UB inks bottling pacts in Thailand, Lanka and Pak
THE UB Spirits Division, the world's fourth largest spirits marketer by volume, has entered into bottling agreements in Thailand, Sri Lanka and Pakistan as part of a move to take its rum brands and Black Dog scotch whisky to overseas markets. ... More

Glenmark scouting for partner to market new drugs
INTERESTING times are ahead for the mid-sized pharma company Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd, with work on two promising drug candidates in the asthma and diabetes segments respectively progressing steadily. But to market these drug ... More