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Our Bureau

Kolkata, Dec. 3 Astra Microwave made a wave in stock market as it surged 18 per cent after it announced this week that it has received an order for Rs 57.31 crore for supply of sub systems for an Indian Defence programme.

According to analysts, it’s a coincidence that the company announced obtaining of this order for sub systems related to defence radar programme after the Mumbai terrorist attacks.

The Hyderabad-based company is a provider of microwave wireless technologies used in defence, space and telecommunications.

The Rs 300-crore radar programme contract has been obtained from ELTA, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries.

According to an “offset” clause under the contract, ELTA is required to source components and sharing technology worth 30 per cent of the contract value from Indian companies. Astra, which is an “offset partner”, has to execute the order in the next 18 months.

Mr Gurunatha Rao, CFO of Astra, told Business Line that currently the order book position of the company stands at Rs 162 crore, out of which orders worth Rs 100 crore would be executed by the end of the current fiscal, March 31, 2009.

The company is also in the process of merging with it a wholly-owned subsidiary, Astra Microelectronic Technologies, which designs and develops radio frequency chips. The process is expected to be complete by the March.

The stock, however, caught the imagination of the market in the backdrop of the current renewal on focus on spending on defence technology and equipment.

Astra Tech closed at Rs 51.55 on the BSE on Wednesday with a total traded quantity of a record 3.22 lakh shares. The stock has gained 24 per cent in the past week.

PSU defence equipment biggie Bharat Electronics and Hyderabad-headquartered Zen Technologies also shot up.

BEL, which has asked KPMG to chart out a growth roadmap, is likely to receive the report shortly. Apart from drawing up a detailed business plan, KPMG is also likely to assist BEL in implementation and project monitoring.

BEL on Wednesday finished up 3.65 per cent on the BSE with over six-fold volume increase against its fortnightly average. It clocked a traded quantity of 88,029 shares. The counter has gained 12.37 per cent in the past week.

Zen Technologies improved by 6.5 per cent on Wednesday and weekly gain is 22.28 per cent. Its share buy-back has also been contributing to increase in stock price.

The company has decided to buy back 6.5 lakh shares of Rs 10 each at a maximum price of Rs 110.

The stock finished at Rs 102.10 on the BSE.

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