Flightstats clarifies Air India not third worst airline
Clarifying on reports about Air India being the third worst airline in terms of operations, aviation insights company Flightstats has clarified, in a letter to Air India, that their list does not put Air India as the third worst airline in the world. According to a reports a couple of days back, Air India was the third worst airline in the world in terms of operational performance. “The Worst 10 International Airlines of 2016 10. Hainan Airlines – 30.3 percent 9. Korean Air – 31.74 percent 8. Air China – 32.73 percent 7. Hong Kong Airlines – 33.42 percent 6. China Eastern Airlines – 35.8 percent 5. Asiana Airlines – 37.46 percent 4. Philippine Airlines – 38.33 percent 3. Air India – 38.71 percent 2. Icelandair – 41.05 percent 1. El Al – 56 percent,” the report had stated. The rating was contested by Air India, which wrote a letter to FlighStats, which responded by saying that Air India’s projection as third lowest is not accurate. “We understand that a recent article by Bloomberg has portrayed Air India in a negative light and we want to assure you that FlightStats by no means endorsed their portrayal of your performance. While we do highlight exceptional performers, we do not, and have not, highlighted low performance or maintain a list of worst performing airlines,” said Flightstats response The response added that Bloomberg requested and was provided a list of 122 international carriers with their accompanying arrival on-time percentage for the year of 2016. All data is reported using the industry standard A14 metric, which measures the percentage of on-time actual gate arrivals within 14:59 of scheduled gate arrival. “Our data, which was a measure of 97.7 per cent of your arriving flights, indicated that 61.29 per cent of Al’s flight arn’ved within the A14 threshold. Bloomberg applied its journalistic license to invert the A14 result to highlight the percentage of delayed flights being 38.17 per cent and indicated that the number was a predictor to future delays. This is not how we would portray airline OTP; nor were we given access to the Bloomberg article prior to its publication. Please note we are making a formal statement about this on our website as well as via our social and media channels,” reads the missive, written by James E Hetzel, Vice President, Business development at FlightStats, Inc. Blake Wheeler Authentic Jersey
SpiceJet to seal $10 billion deal with Boeing for 737 jets: Sources
India’s SpiceJet is set to seal an order for at least 90 new 737 jets from Boeing, two sources said on Thursday, as the low-cost carrier targets an expansion to tap into the South Asian nation’s booming air travel market. The announcement for the 737 MAX aircraft – which includes at least 42 of the narrowbody jets SpiceJet had previously agreed to buy from Boeing in 2014 – is expected as early as Friday when SpiceJet’s chairman holds a press event in New Delhi, the sources, who were familiar with the matter, said. One of the sources said the SpiceJet order could be for as many as 100 new planes. Boeing last week posted an order for 100 737 MAX jets from an unidentified customer. The sources declined to be identified ahead of Friday’s press announcement. An agreement with SpiceJet, which has a current fleet of 40 planes, would be a much-needed boost for Boeing in India, as its rival Airbus has won record-sized orders with InterGlobe Aviation’s IndiGo, India’s biggest budget airline, as well as a recent deal with GoAir. SpiceJet and Boeing did not respond to requests for comment. India is the world’s fastest growing aviation market and among the most attractive for planemakers seeking a new wave of growth. Indian passenger numbers are increasing by more than 20 percent annually thanks to low prices and rising disposable incomes. SpiceJet has been in talks with Boeing and Airbus since 2015, and it is expected to have secured a discount from the roughly $10 billion cost of 90 737 MAX jets based on list prices. Airlines typically get discounts from list prices when placing large orders. Under chairman Ajay Singh, SpiceJet has been rebuilding its business since almost collapsing after running out of cash in late 2014. The airline has grown its market share and returned to profitability but it remains far smaller than market leader IndiGo. Despite soaring passenger numbers, Indian carriers have struggled to achieve consistent profitability because of fierce competition, regular price wars and high operating costs. Anthony Duclair Womens Jersey
Haryana to offer cheap power for new investors
Haryana government will be soon announce a new tariff policy for manufacturing units that are part of fresh investments, and make it easier for industry to get new power connections and upgrade sanctioned load. Special sops for the mobile phone manufacturing industry are also in the offing. Speaking at a panel discussion on IT and ITes industry at the Pravasi Divas, Anurag Rastogi, principal secretary, power department, said the government is working on the twin goals of improving the availability and reducing cost of power. “It has been decided that a new power regime based on common sense, and actual ground conditions will be introduced,” Rastogi said. The state government is also working on reducing the cost of power to industrial units and new units could be supplied cheaper power. “The cost of power in Haryana is relatively high but this problem would also be addressed by boosting the transmission system. It is being considered to supply power to new units at favourable rates,” he said. A sum of ?20,000 crore has been spent as part of the infrastructure upgrade and Gurgaon would get six 220 kv sub-stations. To boost electronic and mobile phone manufacturing, the government will announce sops for the mobile phone industry too. “Two to three large mobile phone companies have signed agreements with the state. They have asked for specific incentives, which are under positive consideration,” Devender Singh, principal secretary, industries and commerce department, said. The state is also getting a digital upgrade in line with the vision of digital India. Haryana industries and commerce minister Vipul Goel said the optical fibre has been laid in 3,500 villages, and the rest would be connected soon. Mackensie Alexander Womens Jersey
Govt to spend $10 billion on airport infrastructure: Civil Aviation Secretary
A sum of $10 billion would be spent in next five years to develop airport infrastructure in India so that the country could become the world’s third largest aviation market in seven years, Civil Aviation Secretary RN Choubey has said. As many as 400 unused airstrips across the country that had become cattle grazing grounds, would be brought back to life, he said. Addressing a day-long India Aviation Summit here today, Choubey said the Civil Aviation Ministry was determined to maintain the “historic” 23 per cent growth rate achieved in the aviation sector in the country. “$10 billion would be spent in next five years to develop airport infrastructure. Our aim is to become the third largest aviation market in the next seven years. We are determined to stay ahead of the growth curve,” he said. India’s nearest rival in terms of aviation growth was China with 14 per cent. Progressive and proactive industry-friendly policies played a significant part in Indian aviation’s growth story and not just the fall in fuel prices, Choubey remarked. “Our ultimate objective is to take the flight to the masses and to this end we have come up with a progressive policy. We have also undertaken a very very bold experiment called Regional Air Connectivity Scheme at the national level,” the bureaucrat said. “For the first time, the civil aviation sector has achieved rail parity. While the railways turnover is Rs 1.6 lakh crore, civil aviation turnover touched Rs 1.4 lakh crore and the number of rail and air passengers has also become almost equal,” Choubey pointed out. “Civil aviation is now just as popular and just as necessary. Airfares are now comparable to air-conditioned train fares. No one could imagine subsidy for air travel but under the RAC Scheme, we have been extending 50-60 per cent viability gap funding,” he said. Stating that RAC Scheme created a lot of “excitement”, the Civil Aviation Secretary said they received enquiries for as many as 800 routes. Civil Aviation Minister P Ashok Gajapati Raju, Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, and FICCI Chairman (Aviation) Pratyush Kumar were also present on the occasion. The Civil Aviation Ministry organised the summit in collaboration with Andhra Pradesh Government and FICCI, for the first time in Vijayawada. Justin Faulk Womens Jersey
Government wants to know if it can recover $1.55 billion from RIL
The government is seeking legal advice on whether it can recover $1.55 billion compensation from Reliance Industries in the gas dispute case with ONGC while arbitration proceedings are underway, people with direct knowledge of the matter said. The oil ministry had directed Reliance in November to pay $1.55 billion, or about Rs 10,600 crore, to the government for “unjust gains” from producing natural gas that had flowed from the adjoining field of Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC). Reliance initiated arbitration against the decision. “We are seeking advice from our lawyers and the law ministry to decide if we can recover the amount while the arbitration is in progress. Once we get their views, we will take a final call,” one of the sources said. It can take months, if not years, for the arbitration panel to complete proceedings and decide on the case. “The government has all options available to it and has not foreclosed any option. The one that will best suit the interests of government/public will be decided,” an oil ministry official said. Reliance Industries declined to comment for the story. The government demand was based on the Justice AP Shah panel report, which concluded that Reliance had unjustly gained by producing gas that had migrated to its field off the eastern coast from adjoining ONGC fields. The report said Reliance must restore that gain to the government. Reliance Industries has nominated Bernard Eder, a former High Court judge in the UK, to the arbitration panel while the government has named G S Singhvi, a retired Supreme Court judge, as its representative. The hearing will begin in India after the third arbitrator is decided. RIL had previously said the government order was arbitrary as the company had carried out its activities within the boundaries of the block it operates and had abided by contractual provisions and the law. Johnny Hekker Womens Jersey
Chhattisgarh:170 ROADS COSTING RS 25,000 CR BEING DEVELOPED: RAMAN
Chief Minister Raman Singh on Monday said that work on 170 new roads in Chhattisgarh is currently underway at a project outlay of Rs 25,000 crore. “While reviewing the status of road construction projects, I have told the Public Works Department that there should not be any dearth of quality raw material required for construction of roads”, he said. He was addressing a press conference here after chairing a Collectors’ conference in the Mantralaya. Singh said that timelines had been set for completion of all the 170 roads. The Chief Minister said that he had personally reviewed the construction status of 100 roads at the meeting while the Chief Secretary had been reviewing the road construction status of all works constantly. “Our aim is also to provide internet connectivity in 10,000 panchayat-level Lok Seva Kendras as soon as possible. These Lok Seva Kendras will also have a ‘Mini Bank”, Singh said. The Government is emphasizing on better governance practices and cashless transactions, he said. On skill development, the Chief Minister said that the Collectors had been asked to identify more trades where people can be trained in their respective districts for getting them suitable employment. Terrance West Jersey
Govt spending to continue driving infra; budgetary support needed
Public sector spending is expected to remain the prime driver for infrastructure next year too, especially with programmes like Inland Water Transport and Sagarmala requiring initial funding from the Budget, said Manish Agarwal, PwC Capital Projects & Infrastructure leader, on Budget expectations for the infrastructure sector. Responding to questions from the public in Business Standard’s live chat, Agarwal asserted that private sector investment was still to make a comeback in the area of infrastructure spending. He claimed that the road sector would remain the largest recipient of budgetary support in the coming Budget. However, there could be an increase in the share for the Sagarmala and Inland Waterways projects. Excerpts of his views: On impact of Budget merger on Railways It would be interesting to see if the merger of the Railway and General Budgets leads to budgetary allocations for an integrated approach to transport and logistics. The merger of the two Budgets would not by itself change the fortunes of the loss-making Indian Railways or have an impact on its performance. It would, however, help to bring more focus on the key issues relevant to the Budget, that is, sources of funds and what they will be used for. “Over the last few years, using it (Budget) for making populist announcements had reduced. Pricing of railways has also largely moved out of the Budget speech, into a regular commercial decision taken from time to time. Of course, this change alone will not have any impact on performance; but I do see progress against the five year plan set out by the Railways,” he said. On budgetary salve for note ban impact Agarwal said that he was not sure whether the government’s surprise demonetisation measure had had an impact on investments in the infrastructure sector. However, there would be disruption in construction activity due to the note ban — an issue which he expects would be resolved over time. Instead, he pointed to stress in the banking sector as having a greater impact on bringing private investments back into infrastructure. Toll roads would certainly have faced an impact and some compensation for toll road operators could be part of the Budget. On impact of tax sops and subsidies on infra spend While, PM Narendra Modi’s speech on New Year’s eve suggested Budget 2017 might allot major funds to subsidies and tax sops to offset the demonetisation pain, Agarwal did not expect it to cut into the allocations for the infrastructure sector. “I would expect the fiscal space for additional subsidies to be created through higher tax revenues. So, I wouldn’t expect it to hit infra spend. On the contrary, increased infra spend would be in line with the messaging in the New Year’s eve speech,” he said. On govt’s new credit rating system Adopting a wait-and-watch approach on any impact from the government’s proposed new credit rating system for infrastructure, Agrawal said, “I expect there could be a more nuanced evaluation of construction period risks (for example, extent of land acquisition completed could be a differentiator). This could help banks and other institutional financiers. I wouldn’t expect bond financing of greenfield risk, initially.” On tax incentives for infra financing Tax incentive to attract long-term retail capital into infrastructure could help, Agarwal said, particularly with volume of operating assets now being large. However, he explained that the overall approach seems to be of reducing tax concessions. “In line with that, I would be more keen to see steps for creating a market for long-term bonds,” he said. Joe Theismann Jersey
Gautam Adani promises to invest Rs 49,000 crore in Gujarat over 5 years
Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani announced investment of Rs 49,000 crore in Gujarat for expansion of port capacity as well as foraying into water and cement businesses over the next five years. Adani Group will set up a 10 million tonnes cement clinker plant at an investment of Rs 5,500 crore and another Rs 2,000 crore in a desalination plant in Gujarat, he said at the 8th Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit here. Adani Enterprises has already incorporate a new company, Adani Cementation (ACL), which will carry on the cement business. “In the past 5 years, we have invested Rs 48,000 crore in Gujarat,” Adani said. Adani Ports, India’s largest private port and logistics company, in the next five years will invest Rs 16,700 crore to expand capacity of all its Gujarat ports at Mundra, Dahej, Hazira and Ajira and Tuna, he said. Adani said the group is also accelerating its investment in renewable space in Gujarat. “In the year 2021, our new investments in solar as well as wind development will exceed Rs 23,000 crore,” he added. In addition to infrastructure business, the Adani Group is also making significant investment in expanding its agri footprint. “Adani Wilmar is India’s largest edible oil business and recognised as undisputed market leader that sells under brand name Fortune,” he said, adding the group will invest Rs 1,200 crore in expanding edible oil manufacturing capacity at Mundra and Ajira. The group currently operates the world’s single largest edible oil refinery of 3400 tonnes per day capacity at Mundra. “We are now doubling our manufacturing capacity in Gujarat. This expansion will see us making combined investment of Rs 1,200 crore across Mundra and Ajira,” he said. Adani said as part of its integrated infrastructure business model, two new businesses – water and cement – will see new investment. “We will be investing Rs 2,000 crore in setting up series of desalination plant across the state. Also, we are building a 10 million tonnes grassroot cement clinker plant at an investment of Rs 5,500 crore at Mundra,” he said. “All this will further make Mundra most integrated infrastructure complex of the world.” The Summit, he said, has strategically positioned India as a key destination for international investments. He said that as a proud Indian and a proud Gujarati, he assures full support to the state from the Adani Group. “Let me summarise by saying that over the next 5 years we will invest Rs 49,000 crore in the state of Gujarat and will create direct and indirect job opportunity for 25,000 people,” he said. Jayon Brown Jersey
Northeast could feed India up to 1,100 MW of power by year end
The northeastern region, with its huge energy potential — 50,000 MW, by some estimates — could soon become the “power house of India”. And taking a small first step in this direction, it is expected to feed the rest of the country up to 1,100 MW by the end of this year, energy experts say. Seven northeastern states, excluding Sikkim, currently have an installed capacity of 2,690 MW, but as some of the plants are very old, the output is some 100 MW short of the peak-hour demand of 2,200-2,300 MW. However, there is a surplus of 300 MW during off-peak hours, while another 767 MW of capacity will be added by year-end. Sikkim is self-sufficient at 95.70 MW. State-run North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO), a mini-ratna company under the Union Ministry of Power, alone generates 1,290 MW from its seven power plants — a mix of hydro-electric, gas- and solar-based units. “NEEPCO’s generation capacity would rise to 2,060 MW by this end-2017 as commissioning of three more power projects would be completed much before the end of this year,” NEEPCO Chairman and Managing Director A.G. West Kharkongor told IANS. “The company is now commissioning three power projects — 600 MW and 110 MW capacity plants in Arunachal Pradesh and another of 60 MW capacity in Mizoram,” he added. “If the government allows NEEPCO, it would supply surplus power to other states of the country,” Kharkongor said. And, to feed the surplus power from the northeast to other parts of India, the state-run Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL) has erected 800-kv capacity and 1,728-km-long High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission line from Biswanath Chariyalli in Guwahati to Agra in Uttar Pradesh at an investment of Rs 12,000 crore ($1.8 billion). The power ministry has estimated the hydro-power potential of the northeastern region at 58,971 MW, almost 40 percent of the country’s total potential, but only less than two per cent (1,200 MW) has been exploited till last year. Energy expert Sudhindra Kumar Dube said that the power generation potential of the northeastern region must be utilised with proper planning. “The region has not only potential to generate a huge amount of hydro-power but also has scope to set up more gas- and coal-based plants in the region,” Dube told IANS. NEEPCO also plans to generate at least 1,500 MW from non-conventional sources of energy such as solar and wind power in the next five years. With a population of 45.58 million in the northeastern region, the eight states including Sikkim, have a per capita electricity consumption of 257.98 kilowatt hour (kWh) against the national average of 778.71 kWh. State Power and Transport Minister Manik Dey said that Tripura has agreed to supply an additional 100 MW of electricity to Bangladesh over and above the 100 MW being supplied since March 23, 2016. “The Bangladesh government has sought more electricity from India to tackle its power crisis in the eastern part of the country. India’s power ministry recently wanted to know whether the Tripura government is ready to provide additional 100 MW of power to Bangladesh. We have accordingly agreed,” Dey told IANS. Cris Carter Womens Jersey
All states except Uttar Pradesh ink pact to achieve 24X7 power
All states barring Uttar Pradesh have inked agreements with the Centre to achieve the milestone of providing ’24×7 Power For All (PFA)’. “With the signing of the ’24×7 Power For All (PFA)’ roadmap document with the state (Tamil Nadu yesterday), the roadmap for all the 28 states, except one, and all the 7 Union Territories in the country have now been finalised and is under implementation,” Power Ministry said in a statement today. A source said, “Uttar Pradesh has not inked 24×7 PFA roadmap document with Power Ministry.” The ministry said it is the most significant milestone in this initiative founded on the principles of cooperative federalism. This milestone was achieved yesterday when the Power Ministry also signed the MoU for Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY) with Tamil Nadu here. UDAY scheme is meant for revival of debt stressed discoms. The ministry said that providing access to reliable and quality power supply to all citizens/establishments by 2019 is at the core of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for the nation. The Power Ministry’s 24×7 program is aimed at delivering on it. The Program has been instrumental in mainstreaming the Ministry’s focus on energy efficiency and demand side management interventions and has resulted in increased participation with speedy rollout of the UJALA/ DELP and other EESL led schemes. UJALA has emerged as the world’s largest and most successful LED bulbs program, it said. Increased role of central sector agencies such as NTPC in addressing sector’s operational viability in the case of proposed acquisition of state owned generation assets in Rajasthan and in fast-tracking capacity addition in the case of Patratu project in Jharkhand are outcomes of the comprehensive approach adopted under 24×7 PFA Program to resolve state specific problems, the ministry said. Besides, development of segment wise coordinated physical rollout plans and rigorous analysis on financial viability of state utilities under the 24×7 PFA program in Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh, the plans for which were made in first 100 days of coming of this government, led to the formulation of the UDAY, it said. Looking at the balance sheets of these states, it was found that unless the states are taken out of the debt trap which they were in and made financially sustainable, all plans of 24×7 power would remain unfulfilled, it said. The PFA Program has also benefited several states in addressing funding gap for the investments required to ensure 24×7 power access to all. Jake McCabe Womens Jersey