No Toll Takes A Toll On Concessionaires
It’s been just over 10 days since concessionaires have resumed collecting toll on national highways. The government had waived all toll payments after it announced the demonetisation decision. And though they are back in business, the operators are now in a fix as the government is yet to clarify on the compensation formula for the shortfall in collection, either in terms of cash reimbursement or an extension in the toll collection period. Concessionaires, who had been asked not to collect toll, would be reimbursed up to 75 percent of the total loss in collection due to demonetisation, Raghav Chandra, the chairman of National Highways Authority of India said on November 15. Chandra’s term as head of the highway authority ended on November 23. “We will compensate the concessionaires by making interim payments to them, up to 75 percent so as to ease their cash flows,” Chandra had said. But, now the government may just choose to extend the tenure of collection, instead of making an upfront payment, and the companies are not too happy about it. We don’t know whether there will be an actual reimbursement or whether there will be an extension of the concession period. One has to wait and watch, but we are not going to accept this because basically we are fighting for complete revenue loss reimbursement. Honestly, cash in hand is better than an extension.” Isaac George, Director and CFO, GVK Power and Infrastructure Ltd. Similarly, MEP Infrastructure Developers Ltd., which operates 25 toll plazas across seven states, including all five entry points into Mumbai, has also approached the authorities – NHAI and Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation – to be compensated for the loss incurred. “We have already approached the authorities for around Rs 100-120 crore loss that we have incurred on toll plazas across Mumbai and various national highways,” said Jayant Mhaiskar, vice chairman and managing director, of the company on an analyst conference call. Demonetisation led to a loss of Rs 70-80 crore across various national highways, and Rs 35-40 crore from the five entry points into Mumbai and the Bandra-Worli Sea Link, which the company operates, Mhaiskar added. The toll concessionaires fear that if the authorities decide to extend the toll period instead of paying them, the losses will leave a big dent in their third quarter earnings. “Demonetisation would have an impact on revenue in Q3 due to the pause in toll collections across the plazas,” Mhaiskar said. GVK’s Isaac shared the concern. Certainly. It would have an impact (on Q3 numbers). See, if they are not going to reimburse me the loss of revenue in totality, then there will be an impact on my profitability and revenue.” Isaac George, Director and CFO, GVK Power and Infrastructure GVK, which operates the Jaipur-Kishangarh expressway and Deoli-Kota expressway in Rajasthan, has asked the NHAI to reimburse the operations and maintenance expenses and interest rate loss, incurred over the 25 days when they had been barred from collecting toll. Hindustan Construction Company Ltd. which has recently started collecting toll on the Farakka-Raiganj highway in West Bengal, however, seems to have some clarity. “We have received a circular where they (NHAI) have agreed that whatever time period is lost because of not tolling would be compensated by giving an additional time post completion of concession period,” said Praveen Sood, Group CFO of HCC in an interview to BloombergQuint. The Pain Continues Vehicular traffic is yet to pick up said MEP Infrastructure’s Mhaiskar, with at least 12 percent fewer commercial vehicles crossing toll plazas in December, thus denting daily collections. Passenger vehicles traffic has not fallen as much, Mhaiskar added Wait And Watch MSRDC accepted that the companies have approached the authority for loss of revenue. The claims, however, are yet to be submitted officially to the respective offices, said Kiran Kurundkar, the joint managing director of MSRDC. The claims from Mep Infra have not yet been submitted. I still have to see such claims. But the company has informed us that they have suffered losses because of demonetisation. Kiran Kurundkar, Joint Managing Director, MSRDC Once the claims are submitted, MSRDC will do its own background check wherein the historic traffic data will be analysed and an average collection per day will be calculated. Based on the assessment, MSRDC will figure out the loss incurred by the company on a daily basis and forward it to the state government for approval. See there is a process. I can’t just process the claims that the company sends me. I have to also get it approved from the state government as they have worked with the central government in tandem to stop toll collection post demonetisation Kiran Kurundkar, Joint Managing Director, MSRDC Highway operators are resigned to waiting for the central and state governments to get their act together. “We will have to wait patiently and see what NHAI does. We can’t be pushing them. Even if we do, nothing will happen. They will take their own time deciding when to start reimbursements” Isaac said. Yangervis Solarte Womens Jersey
India to build 69 bridges in Myanmar as part of intnl highway
Eyeing development of the north east, India has undertaken a number of infrastructure projects with Myanmar, including construction of 69 bridges in the neighbouring country as part of a trilateral highway. Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh said the bridges and road projects under the India-Myanmar-Thailand highway will benefit both Myanmar and the north eastern states. He said India is also implementing the Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project (KMTTP) with an aim to improve connectivity between Indian ports on the eastern seaboard and Sittwe port in Myanmar. To a separate question, he said awarding of work for construction of road between Paletwa and Zorinpui under the KMTTP in Myanmar got rescheduled due to delay in undertaking pre-bid site inspection. He, however, said there was no cost overrun due to delay. Paul Richardson Authentic Jersey
Delhi’s Eastern, Western Peripheral Expressways likely by August 2017: Gadkari
The Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressways, being constructed at a cost of Rs 15,000 crores, are expected to be thrown open by August 2017. The two roads will reduce Delhi’s congestion by 50%, besides cutting its pollution, union transport minister Nitin Gadkari, announced on December 15, 2016. He assured that the centre was working seriously, to decongest the national capital and improve its air quality. “We are building the easterly and westerly bypass with a cost of Rs 15,000 crores. It was to be completed in two-and-a-half years. However, following the prime minister’s directive, we will complete the project in 400 days. I am happy to announce that we will be inaugurating it in August, 2017. Construction of this single road will cut down air pollution and congestion in Delhi by 50%,” he said. The eastern and western expressways were planned in 2006, following a Supreme Court order to construct a ring road, to allow non-Delhi bound vehicles to bypass the capital while moving between neighbouring states. See also: NCR’s Eastern Peripheral Expressway to be completed in 400 days Addressing the 3rd India Health and Wellness Summit, Gadkari also said that solid waste from Ghazipur sanitary landfill site in east Delhi, will be used in road construction. “The Central Road Research Organisation, after six months of research, found that solid waste, segregated into plastic, metal and glass, could be used for road construction. The whole garbage at Ghazipur will now be used up for road construction,” he said. Linking health with problems of air pollution, fossil fuels, solid and liquid waste, the minister said diversification of agriculture for harnessing power and energy was needed, to meet the challenges faced by cities. He said that his ministry was working with other ministries, to make Euro VI emission norms mandatory, before April 1, 2020. He cited that 70 projects have been envisaged, to recycle sewage and industrial effluents, as part of efforts to rid the Ganga river of pollution. Jason Spriggs Authentic Jersey
HAL floats radar tender for its Light Combat Aircraft
The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has floated a limited tender for the purchase of AESA (active electronically scanned array) radars for an under-development Light Combat Aircraft ‘Tejas’ from global aviation firms. “The tender in the form of Expression of Interest (EoI) was floated on Wednesday to five of the global aviation technology firms,” a top HAL source said. The EoI was floated by the Aviation Research and Design Centre (ARDC), one of the 10 design centres of HAL, which is engaged in the design and development of LCA ‘Tejas’, source added. The source said Israel is a front-runner in the race, along with a firm from the United States. The India head of one of the contender companies told IANS on the condition of anonymity: “We have been in touch with the HAL for the last two years. We have given them an extensive presentation on the matter.” The HAL has been engaging with global manufacturers vis-a-vis the AESA radars. J.J. Hardy Authentic Jersey
Paytm partners with NHAI for digital payments at toll plazas
Digital payments platform Paytm has announced partnership with major NHAI toll concessionaries like Reliance Infra, Sadhbav, IRB, MEP, L&T and GMR to enable cashless payments at all state, national and city toll plazas. With the partnership, commuters across the country can now pay their toll charges instantly with Paytm by scanning the QR code placed at toll payment counters, using Paytm app. Through this initiative, the company is aiming to cover over five lakh vehicles per day by end of the financial year, it said in a statement here. “Now users can pay toll tax with Paytm using code—based cashless payments across 6000+ lanes across the country, enabling the transportation sector transition to a digital economy,” Paytm’s Senior Vice President Kiran Vasireddy said. Currently, over a million offline merchants across India now accept Paytm as their preferred payment mode, Paytm claims. Jonathan Schoop Authentic Jersey
OPEC supply still opaque despite more data – Petro-Logistics
OPEC’s first supply cut deal in eight years came as good news for a Swiss family business founded by an economics analyst who once helped the then Rhodesian government procure oil supplies in the face of sanctions. Geneva-based Petro-Logistics earns money from the lack of timely and complete information from OPEC members and other oil exporters like Russia in the 95 million barrels-per-day global market, by tracking shipments to estimate production and supply. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is planning to cut its output by 1.2 million bpd from Jan. 1, its first such deal since 2008. Russia and other non-members are planning to cut about half as much. The deal will heighten interest in assessments of OPEC production, to see the extent to which it makes good on the cutbacks. As well as Petro-Logistics, other consultants, government bodies and news services estimate OPEC output. Oil prices jumped to $57.89 a barrel, their highest since July 2015, on Dec. 12, supported by the prospect of lower supply. Estimates of OPEC and Russian compliance in 2017 will likely lead to more price volatility. Since the early days of Petro-Logistics which was founded in 1980, and since the last OPEC cut of 2008, more data has become available, such as satellite information on tanker positions, helping to make the oil market more transparent. While this helps, piecing together the whole picture such as what type of crude is on the tanker and who is buying it remains no easy task, Petro-Logistics’ chief executive Daniel Gerber, who began with the firm in 2009, told Reuters. “When I started at Petro-Logistics, we were still using Lloyds List Voyage Records, which were monthly publication hardbound books providing you with a handful of tanker positions in any one update,” he said. “While there is some information that is easier to get, such as satellite data on ship positions, the whole story is harder to put together in terms of things like grades, customers, refining activity, in-country demand and field-by-field production, making the element of human experience even more important than in the past.” Petro-Logistics estimates OPEC managed to achieve about 60 to 70 percent of the pledged reductions last time around in 2008-2009, and expects a similar level with the new initiative. “This time we expect the core OPEC – Saudi, UAE and Kuwait – to largely stick to their commitments, which alone should result in about 50 percent cut compliance. With a bit of help from the other members, we should see 60-70 percent compliance once again.” Libya and Nigeria – exempt from the cut – are wild cards, as is Russia. “Russia doesn’t have the best history of joining OPEC cuts, they are another big wild card.” COUNTERING SANCTIONS Since OPEC accounts for the bulk of the world’s oil exports, its level of production is vital information for traders, consumers and governments. The trouble is, finding that number is not easy due to a dearth of timely official information. Even OPEC itself issues two sets of figures – those provided by members and independent estimates – which show significant differences about the level of, say, Saudi or Iraqi output. Petro-Logistics was founded by Conrad Gerber, Daniel’s father, after he had spent 13 years working for the Rhodesian government, “countering sanctions and defying an apparently hostile world,” as his son put it. “My father received a challenge from an oil trader to perfect a new discipline in oil market analysis – the art and science of tanker tracking,” Gerber said. “He was willing to do the hard work. That meant a lot of travel to some pretty interesting places, setting up structures to bring all the information together, and the crucial part, the experienced human element.” The Petro-Logistics OPEC estimates originally relied on Gerber senior’s vast network of contacts. Sent out to clients under the heading “CONFIDENTIAL,” the numbers sometimes made their way onto news wires, moving the price of oil. This gave rise to an oil-market myth that Petro-Logistics had people stationed at ports around the world with binoculars, counting tankers as they left with crude, although this was “just people trying to make sense of how my father got access to such good information,” Gerber said. Daniel and his brother, Mark, now manage the company following their father’s death in 2009. It has 15 staff, of which 10 are full time. Three are based in a Houston office. Petro-Logistics’ clients have included most of the main types of participant in the oil market – oil majors, trading houses, banks, hedge funds, national oil companies – and even other OPEC members themselves. “Back in the 80s in particular and still today, OPEC members didn’t trust each other and they were very keen to understand what other members were doing, if they were sticking to their quota agreements,” Gerber said. While it was a myth about the binoculars, and technology now allows real-time tanker tracking, the company does collate information from a source network accumulated over decades. “In reality, knowing what tankers are arriving and leaving a port is the easiest part of the equation,” Gerber said. “Knowing what is on board is far more complex and requires contacts on the ground.” Nick Nelson Jersey
Airlines, airports seen ramping up IT budgets: Study
Airlines and airports in India are expected to rapidly ramp up their spend on new technology over the next three years to keep up with surging growth which will see passenger traffic double to 370 million by 2020. According to SITA 2016 India IT trends benchmark study released at the India ICT Aviation forum 2016 on Friday, all airlines in India are expected to see IT budgets increase in 2017 compared with last year. SITA is a global communications and IT solutions provider. Jonathan Ogden Authentic Jersey
India introduces Scheduled Commuter airline category
In an effort to increase participation in the Indian government’s Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS), the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has unveiled a new category of commercial operator aimed specifically at the commuter carrier niche. “In order to promote/enhance regional connectivity, the concept of Scheduled Commuter Air Transport Services has been introduced,” the aviation regulator said in a proposal issued last week. The Commuter sector will be broken down into two categories: Scheduled Commuter Operator (Small) for operators whose aircraft do not exceed a gross-weight of 5,700kg and Scheduled Commuter Operator (Large) for those whose aircraft’s gross-weights are more than 5,700 kg and up to 40,000 kg. In the event a mixed fleet is operated, the requirements for a Scheduled Commuter Operator (Large) shall have to be complied with. In terms of capitalization, Scheduled Commuter Operators (Small) with up to three aircraft will need to have a paid-up capital of at least INR50 million (USD740,000) which increases to a maximum of INR150 million (USD2.2 million) for each additional aircraft added to its AOC. Willie Brown Authentic Jersey
Government takes up Air India slots issue with Dubai, Hong Kong
Government today said it has taken up the slots issue being faced by Air India at Dubai and Hong Kong airports with the aeronautical authorities of both the countries. Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju informed the Lok Sabha that Air India is facing issues with airport slots in Dubai and Hong Kong. “The issue of slots in Dubai and Hong Kong has been specifically raised with their aeronautical authorities for immediate resolution,” Raju said in a written reply. He said Air India did not get uniform daily slots for its flights to and from Dubai during NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) at Calicut from September 1, 2015 to March 25, 2017. He added that the national carrier is “unable to start new flight on Mumbai-Hong Kong route due to non-availability of slots at Hong Kong”. In a separate written reply, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said two cases related to Air India are “under investigation by the CBI”. He was responding to a query by BJP member Nana Patole regarding irregularities in purchase of aircraft, including Boeing 737 at exorbitant prices by Air India in connivance with the Ministry during 2004 and reasons for not taking any legal action in this scam. The member’s another query was whether the government proposes to probe the matter again in view of the judgement given by an Ontario court in Canada. According to Patole, a paid agent of Canadian firm Cryptometrics and officials holding top posts in the Ministry and Air India were found involved in disputed and unnecessary projects including biometric system undertaken by the Ministry during 2004-2008. “Both cases are under investigation by the CBI,” Sinha said. Meanwhile, the government has made an equity infusion of Rs 23,993 crore into Air India till November this year under the turnaround plan for the carrier. “Till November 2016, the government has already infused an amount of Rs 23,993 crore in the form of equity infusion into Air India. “The company has achieved most of the targets set out in the TAP (Turnaround Plan) milestones, and has made progress in both operational as well as financial areas,” Sinha said in another written reply. As per the TAP/FRP (Financial Restructuring Plan) for Air India, the government is to infuse Rs 30,231 crore as equity support and repayment of the government guaranteed loans/ interest till FY 2020-21. Jon Weeks Jersey
Airlines shrug off notes ban concerns to fly high in November
While demonetisation has dampened demand across sectors, the aviation sector has clearly defied this trend and has posted over 20% growth in passengers flown during November. Data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), accessed exclusively by ET, shows that air passengers during November has grown by 20.6% over the same month last year. The data shows that domestic airlines flew about 7.7 million passengers during November this year, compared with 6.3 million during the same month last year. “This is despite the fact that November last year was the Diwali month. So, the growth this November is over a higher base, which clearly shows that there has been no impact of demonetisation on the aviation sector,” said a senior aviation ministry official, who did not want to be identified. On November 8, 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced that Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 note will not be legal tender from midnight. Industry insiders say that post the announcement, the bookings fell for the following couple of days but picked up eventually. Airlines also announced series of discounts to arrest the fall in bookings. Travel industry analysts termed the growth as excellent. “There could be a couple of reasons for the growth during November. The fares in the industry are low due to various reasons, which is fuelling the growth momentum. Apart from that, airlines also announced discounts and that might have helped the sector,” said Sharat Dhall, chief operating officer at Yatra-.com, India’s second largest online portal. The biggest reason, he said, could also be the fact that only a small percentage of booking in this sector is done through cash. “About 80% of the bookings in the sector is online and corporate, which is always booked digital. Even among the rest 20%, which is booked through agents, payment of a large percentage is made digitally,” Dhall said. Mario Addison Womens Jersey