Espresso: Bharti, Reliance Industries announce global deals

Bharti Global refreshes OneWeb investment

Bharti Global, the overseas arm of Bharti Enterprises, will add another $500 million to become the largest shareholder (38.6 percent) in OneWeb, a global communications network powered by a constellation of 650 Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites.

In October 2020, a United States Bankruptcy Court confirmed OneWeb’s Chapter 11 plan to resume business operations under the ownership of the UK Government and Bharti Global. The latter had invested $500 million then.

"With its Global ITU LEO Spectrum priority, telco partnerships, successful launch momentum, and reliable satellites, OneWeb is ready to serve the vital needs of high-speed broadband connectivity for those who have been left behind,” said Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairperson of Bharti Enterprises and OneWeb, in a press statement on Tuesday.

ADNOC and Reliance sign strategic partnership

Reliance Industries (RIL) has signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) to join a chemicals facility in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi, which will produce chlor-alkali, ethylene dichloride, and PVC (polyvinyl chloride).

Chlor-alkali is used in water treatment and in the manufacture of textiles and metals. PVC has a range of applications in housing, infrastructure and consumer goods.

The integrated plant in Ruwais will have an annual capacity to produce 9.40 lakh tons of chlor-alkali, 11 lakh tons of ethylene dichloride, and 3.60 lakh tons of PVC, according to a press statement.

Pharma companies collaborate to test Oral Antiviral Drug for COVID-19

Cipla, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, Emcure Pharmaceuticals, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Torrent Pharmaceuticals have come together to test Molnupiravir, an investigational oral antiviral drug for COVID-19.

The clinical trial for treatment of mild symptoms of COVID-19 is expected to take place between June and September this year across India with 1,200 patients.

As per the directive of the Subject Expert Committee of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization, Dr Reddy’s will conduct the clinical trial using its product, and the other companies must demonstrate equivalence of their product to the product used by Dr Reddy’s.

India rises to 10th in Global Cybersecurity Index 2020

India has risen from 47th rank in 2018, to 10th in the Global Cybersecurity Index (GC) 2020. The GCI is an initiative of the International Telecommunication Union, a United Nations agency for information and communications technologies. The GCI measured each country’s cybersecurity commitment through a question-based online survey that assessed capability in five areas: legal, technical, organisational, capacity development, and cooperation.

Covid-19 hits IRCTC revenue and profits in FY2021

IRCTC, the Indian Railways subsidiary for ticketing, catering and tourism services, reported a 65 percent fall in operating revenue at Rs 783 crore in the 2021 fiscal. 

The COVID-19 pandemic had hit train operations, the primary contributor to IRCTC’s topline. Its profit dropped 62 percent from Rs 509 crore in 2019-20 to Rs 193 crore in 2020-21.

At the segment level, internet ticketing contributed Rs 448 crore (57.3 percent of IRCTC's total revenue), down 27.6 percent from Rs 620 crore (27.4 percent) in 2019-20.

Mid-tier IT firms to join the party: analyst report

Mid-tier IT services firms will report strong growth in the June 2021 quarter, according to a Kotak Institutional Equities research report dated June 28, 2021. It expects Mindtree, Mphasis and LTI to lead the mid-tier charge.

The results will be an outcome of strong growth from top client and top-10 clients, a mix of higher spending and share gains, and accelerated digital spends, the report stated.

While the client demand is strong and broad-based, Kotak Institutional Equities pointed to a "war for talent” with compensation increase of more than 20 percent for ‘in-demand’ skills. 

So, keep an eye on the attrition rates of all firms—big and small.