New Delhi :

Jindal Steel and Power (JSPL) has acquired 100 per cent stake in Kineta Power, a privately-owned coal-based 1,980 MW power plant in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh, for an undisclosed sum.

Confirming the deal, JSPL’s Managing Director and CEO Ravi Uppal  told that the deal was signed 3-4 months ago. It has all statutory clearances, he added.

“Kineta project we have acquired. We wanted to come to Andhra Pradesh, that’s why we acquired that site. That is a good site, 8 kms from the sea coastline. It is a virgin site with environment clearance, land title clear,” he said.

When asked about the details, he said the acquisition was done “about 3-4 months ago. It has clear titles, boundary walls, all statutory clearances are there. The capacity will be between 3 units of 660 MW or 2 units of 800 MW”.

However, the company will not be moving ahead with project construction at the moment due to low power demand and “unless some reforms take place in the sector”, he said.

Uppal, however, did not disclose the deal value.

Industry insiders said the deal would be executed in phases and the project cost would be around Rs 10,000 crore.

They further said that JSPL  acquired Kineta Power through Jindal Power and the share purchase agreement was signed with Bangalore-based Kineta Mines and Minerals –the original promoters of the project– on September 4 last year.

JSPL has plans to run the plant on imported coal, they said, adding that the company is currently doing detailed engineering and planning of the project. The company will import coal from its mines in Indonesia and would blend it with the thermal coal produced at its mines in Mozambique .

Terming the deal a very good buy for JSPL, industry insiders said that the project has most of the statutory clearances, including environment and defence.

It also has the locational advantage of having railway station, national highway and Krishnapattnam port in the nearby areas and the deal would increase JSPL’s presence in the power-starved Southern India, they said.

Kineta Power was originally promoted by Kineta Minerals and Metals Ltd. The company, headed by V BalaShowry, is primarily engaged in export of iron ore and suppliers of burnt lime, limestone and dolomite etc.

According to the website of Kineta Power, the project’s envisaged capacity is 1980 MW and has been divided into 2 stages. Based on super critical technology, the first stage of the project will have 2 units of 660 MW and second stage would have one unit of 660 MW.

The project has about 1,200 acres of land, of which nearly 840 acres have been acquired through Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd.

Vishakakpatnam :

Amplifon India Pvt Limited, one of the world’s largest hearing care solutions service providers today announced the inauguration of its Clinic at Visakhapatnam. This is one of the largest hearing care clinic in this region designed as per the International standards. Amplifon is renowned for its international quality standards in hearing care solutions. In addition to this new facility in Visakhapatnam, there are more than 90 Amplifon Clinics spread over India including Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Hyderabad, Chandigarh and Delhi. Visakapatnam Clinic represents Amplifon India’s entry into Seemandhra in Andhra Pradesh and will serve people of the entire region.

Spread over an area of approximately 700sq. feet, Amplifon Clinic is the largest private clinic to be established in Visakapatnam and surrounding areas. The clinic offers comprehensive pure tone audiometry test, Impedance audiometry, Oto acoustic emission test, Hearing Aid Trial, Speech Therapy and Free hearing Screening & other special Hearing & Audiology Tests. A study of the demographics and hearing problems prevalent in Visakhapatnam, has led Amplifon to establish a state-of-the-art Clinic in Visakhapatnam. The prevalence of deafness in India is fairly significant. It is the second most common cause of disability. Approximately 63 million people (6.3%) in India suffer from significant auditory loss. While there have been no studies to indicate that more and more people are developing hearing problems, doctors say in recent times many youngsters have started complaining of noise pollution-related disorders. There is a need for International standards of hearing care solutions to be able to fight with the problem of hearing.

Speaking at the inauguration, Mr. Samit Verma, CEO & Market Director, Amplifon India said “Hearing loss is more common than anyone can think. One out of twelve (1/12) persons in India suffer from hearing loss. In fact, over 60% of people in their 60’s suffer from hearing loss and many would benefit from using a hearing care solution. To bridge the gap between people suffering from hear loss and to provide them with best hearing care solutions, we have launched Amplifon Clinic in Vishakapatnam. We are confident that Amplifon Clinic will contribute significantly in fulfilling the audiology & Hearing Care needs for the residents of Vishakapatnam. Our goal is to provide the global standards of quality for hearing care services through our class audiologists trained as per our International Protocols and state-of-the-art hearing care diagnostic solutions. Getting a hearing loss solution is not an easy decision and therefore as an Amplifon’s valued client, customers receives complete hearing care solutions services that perfectly match their lifestyle and budget.”

A gradual hearing loss can often make people feel isolated as they find it difficult to carry on conversations with family or friends. It can make us isolated and withdraw from social interactions. Importantly, it can also increase risk both at home and at the workplace, for example, not hearing a warning alarm. The real benefits of receiving the right hearing care solutions are many – they include enhanced communication, higher self-esteem, improved personal safety and enjoying some of the little things in life such as hearing the waves on a beach or the birds sing in the morning or giggle of grandchild.

Committed to improve the hearing capabilities through excellence in client care, treating hearing loss and, where appropriate, hearing care solutions provider in worldwide. The brand is entrusted with providing the best customized hearing care solutions to every patient. Where appropriate, patients are also provided with ‘test drive’ of different technology and if the patient decides to go ahead, trials of hearing care solutions services are offered with full satisfaction guarantees.

The Clinic is equipped with advanced diagnostics infrastructure, a furnished setup for all types of audiology tests, sound proof hearing test, patient counselling, hearing aid trial & fitting services and a 10 people seating capacity interactive reception area, screening room, sound proof room, details counselling and trial room, ready to serve hot water and cold water, CCTV monitoring, rest room, computerized reporting, pure tone audiometry test, impedance audiometry, special tests, Oto acoustic emission test, hearing aid trial, speech therapy and free hearing screening. The testing lab is laden with the latest equipment capable of performing multiple tests for speech and Hearing. The testing Lab also accommodates a bed for testing “Audiometry Brain-stem Responses” in infants and instruments for Middle Ear Analyzing for all age groups.

Address of the clinic
Amplifon India Pvt Ltd. , 28-1-9,  Opposite Sudha Nursing home, Prakash Rao Peta, Vishakakpatnam,   Pin Code: 530020 / Phone: 0891-6648999

source: http://www.afaqs.com / afaqs! / Home> News> Other Brief / Category: Corporates / Visakhapatnam – February 11th, 2014