Dear Shareholders,
Infrastructure, energy and petroleum are the major growth drivers of
economies the world over including India. Moreover, with the Prime
Minister''s continued reaffirmation of his goal of achieving double
digit GDP growth, India is now one of the focal points for investment
globally. We therefore believe that India has the highest growth
potential for infrastructure business and have geared ourselves to tap
the same.
Like any other business opportunity, there are challenges which need to
be confronted. The most important being persistent inflation; which has
resulted in increased cost of implementation of projects. Another major
impact of inflation has been repeated hike in interest rates. There has
also been a meltdown in the equity markets; particularly in the
infrastructure sector. The global scenario also looks bleak in the
short term with the looming American and European debt crisis while at
the domestic level there is some uncertainty on pace of privatisation
due to certain unfortunate revelations of financial impropriety in
various government tenders. However your Company has the required
managerial and financial resources to maneuver through these challenges
and drive sustainable and stable growth of the organisation.
Since my last communication with you, the Company has started tolling
operations of the Mumbai-Nasik Highway Project. The Company has also
achieved financial closure of Patna-Muzafarpur Highway Project and
Paradip Port Project and additionally taken exploratory steps for
venturing into thermal power generation. I am also happy to inform you
that your Company has started receiving dividends from
Rajahmundry-Dharmavaram Highway Project and Dharmavaram-Tuni Highway
Project which shall be utilised for meeting the capital expenditure for
other projects.
The Company will soon approach you with a rights issue of equity shares
to the extent of about Rs. 200 crores; which will mainly be used as
equity contribution towards ongoing projects. As your Company is
continuously investing in new and existing projects, the Company has
not declared any dividend for the Period.
One of the most critical areas which drive stakeholder value is a
strong team and I would like to thank each and every colleague for
their efforts and support provided throughout the year. Mr. K. K.
Mohanty has taken over the reins of the Company recently as the
Managing Director. Mr. Mohanty brings varied skills to the Company, key
among them being enterprise building, economic value creation and
efficient financial engineering which he has garnered in over thirty
years of experience in the infrastructure sector. Mr. R. K. Malhotra,
with over thirty two years of civil engineering experience in the
parent company has been appointed on the Board as a whole time
director. Mr. Malhotra shall be in charge of project engineering and
execution. Both these appointments have been placed before you for your
approval.
Looking ahead, your Company intends to set on a high growth trajectory
by focusing on early delivery of existing projects and procurement of
value accretive projects. The management is also mulling the
possibility of encashing the intrinsic value of some projects with a
view to meet the funding requirements of the existing and future
projects.
Gearing for the future, the Company shall strive to expand its basket
of projects in existing as well as new sectors and also realigning
sectoral focus. The Company also intends to establish its global
footprint and explore opportunities in certain selected emerging
economies. Your Company has always been known as a pioneer in the
Public Private Partnership arena. We intend to carry forward this
legacy by striving to create standards in the three basic tenets of
infrastructure development; viz: quality execution, engineering
innovation and financial engineering. This shall ultimately result in
higher value creation for all stakeholders including our beloved
motherland.
I thank you for your cooperation and continued support to the Company.
Together, let us make this an infrastructure company the nation and the
world will be proud of.
Regards,
Abhijit Rajan
Chairman & Managing Director
Date: August 11,2011
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