WCA March 2013

India

Dynamic Reliance Reliance Communications, India’s fully integrated telecommunications service provider, and Alcatel-Lucent have announced a first-of-its-kind, end-to-end network managed services contract aimed at delivering superior customer experience in Eastern and Southern India up to 2020. The contract, which extends RCOM’s existing relationship with Alcatel-Lucent to over $1bn, will deliver world-class, seamless voice and data communications services to RCOM customers. This is India’s first fully integrated strategic agreement and one of just a few globally to meet the fast evolving customer demand for communications applications and services in one of the world’s most dynamic telecom markets. Alcatel-Lucent will enhance Reliance Communication’s operations, and synergise hitherto independent wireless and wireline teams to form a single network management organisation. This optimised integration of resources will help Reliance Communications to strengthen its focus on growing its business, with top-of-the-line services to customers. Alcatel-Lucent will also drive a standardisation of the tools, processes and best practices that are applied across RCOM’s businesses. Reliance Communications – India Website : www.relianceada.com Solar power takes off Cochin International Airport is set to become the first airport in India to use solar power for running its utility grid system. A Kolkata-based solar module manufacturing company, Vikram Solar, will install a 100kW solar power facility. Giving details of the system, a senior company official said Vikram Solar will design, install and commission the solar photovoltaic power system. “The panels will generate DC electric power, which unlike the general practice, [will] not be fed directly into the utility grid,” Gyanesh Chaudhary, director of the company said. He explained that inverters will convert the direct current output from the solar array into a grid-compliant AC voltage for lighting in the terminal building. Energy production is estimated to be 148MWh per year, with a capacity of 100 kilowatts-peak (kWp). Terming the initiative of Cochin Airport Authority as an “excellent opportunity and a path-breaking vision” to encourage use of green energy for critical service utilities at the airport, Shaibal Ghosh, the company’s president, said: “It would open the doors for all other airports and utility

services for use of sustainable ‘Clean and Green Power’ and help support to re-energise the environment.” Vikram Solar – India Website : www.vikramsolar.com Rope investment Bharat Wire Ropes (BWR) is to invest in a new plant at Chalisgaon, Maharashtra, to expand its total manufacturing capacity to 76,000 tonnes. The wire rope manufacturer’s capacity currently stands at 10,000 tonnes per year. Work on the project will be completed in June 2014. “The Chalisgaon project will be state-of-the-art, with integrated pickling, patenting galvanising, wire drawing, stranding and closing – all under one roof,” said promoter and managing director ML Mittal. “The machinery will be imported from Germany, Italy and Spain. Half of the production will be exported across the globe and the remaining will be sold in Indian markets,” he added. Established in 1986 in Mumbai as a specialist wire manufacturing company, BWR now makes strands, wire ropes and slings for use in general engineering industries, fishing, elevators, cranes, material handling, onshore/ offshore oil exploration, ports, shipping and mining, as well as supplying railways, navy, air force and other government and semi-government organisations, and exporting. Its portfolio covers a diameter range from 6mm to 125mm. Bharat Wire Ropes – India Website : www.bharatwireropes.com Industry bodies call for equal power Industry and trade associations from different parts of Tamil Nadu met during December to discuss the issue of equitable distribution of power. According to R Palaniswami, honorary secretary, Indian chamber of commerce and industry, Coimbatore, while Chennai division had its power cut for two hours a day, in the rest of the state power cuts extended to between 14 and 16 hours per day. Though repeated representations have been made to the chief minister, the electricity minister, and to the chairman of Tangedco, (Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation) the situation had not improved, but was “deteriorating day by day”. He said some industries were facing threat of closure as a result. Mr Palaniswami said that, with a view to discussing the issue of equitable distribution of power, a meeting of various industry and trade associations from all over the state was to be held in Coimbatore last December.

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Wire & Cable ASIA – March/April 2013