The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group has sealed its $825-million deal with Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks Studios with investment banker JP Morgan syndicating $325 million debt, the two groups announced late Monday.
Anil Ambani's Reliance Big Entertainment has matched the syndicated debt raised from JP Morgan and institutions like Bank of America, City National Bank, Wells Fargo, Comerica, Union Bank of California, SunTrust, California Bank and Trust and Israel Discount Bank.
This apart, Walt Disney Studios that will handle the marketing and distribution of films made by DreamWorks in markets outside India, is also extending a loan for the project, a statement from the studio said.
"This will allow us to move ahead quickly into production with our first group of films," Spielberg was quoted as saying in the statement, along with his long-time associate and partner in the project Stacey Snider.
The studio intends to make five-six films each year.
"Our partnership with Stacey and Steven is the cornerstone of our Hollywood strategy as we grow our film interests across the globe," said Ambani, who had been in talks with Dreamworks for over a year.
"Given our faith in the business plan they presented to us and despite the current economic climate, we were always confident this day would come. Now Stacey and Steven can focus on producing more of the great films for which they are renowned."
Among the first films in the pipeline are one on civil rights leader Martin Luther King for which Spielberg has already obtained the rights, and a remake of the Hollywood classic "Harvey" that stars James Stewart and an invisible giant bunny.
Some of the other films include "39 Clues", "Cowboys and Aliens", "Dinner For Schmucks", "Motorcade" and "Hereafter" in a mix of genres including thrillers, action, comedy and family drama.
The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group ranks among India's top three industrial houses with interests in areas including telecommunications, energy, finance, entertainment and infrastructure development.
The group's entertainment business owns 428 cinema screens across India, the US, Malaysia and Mauritius, contributing 11 percent to the domestic industry's box office collections and 35 percent from the Hindi movies screened in the US.
Its entertainment business has its presence across several platforms, including FM radio, music, sports, gaming, animation, Internet and mobile portals, direct-to-home TV, Internet TV and mobile TV.
Last year, it also entered into pacts to develop Hollywood projects with firms of such stars as Brad Pitt, Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Nicolas Cage, Jim Carrey and George Clooney.
Showing posts with label ADAG. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ADAG. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Anil Ambani group says pressure working on Reliance Industries
The Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group Thursday said it was surprised to note a sudden increase in the output of gas from the Krishna-Godavari basin by Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries just few days after the matter was raised publicly."This clearly confirms our view that the contractor (Reliance Industries) is holding the gas and only public scrutiny and comments are succeeding in putting pressure on the contractor to increase production," said J.P. Chalasani, chief executive of Reliance Power, which is part of the Anil Ambani group.
The comment came against the backdrop of Petroleum Minister Murli Deora informing the parliament Thursday that the current level of production from the Krishna-Godavari was 35 million units per day, just three days after he had put the figure at 31 million units.
Chalasani also reacted to another remark by Deora that the availability of gas in the country had undergone a change for the better and said this again reaffirmed his group's view that scarcity of this natural asset in India was a thing of the past.
"In the future there would only be gas surpluses."
The Reliance Power executive also sought to draw the attention to the oil minister's statement that at the current price of $4.2 per unit, there would be a saving for the government to the extent of Rs.3,000 crore towards fertiliser subsidy.
"However, it could be substantially higher, amounting to over Rs.5,000 crore, if the gas was priced at $2.32 per unit as quoted by Reliance Industries and finalised through international competitive bidding conducted by NTPC," he said.
"Under the scenario of selling the gas at $2.32 per unit, while the government achieves a lower subsidy in the fertiliser sector, it can also completely protect its profit share by maintaining the valuation of the gas at $4.2 per unit."
He said while the price of gas as per the administered price mechanism, where the price is fixed by the government, is $2 per unit, the selling price of the contractor is $4.2 per unit, which is at a premium of over 100 percent over state-fix price.
Chalasani's comments also came against the larger issue of the legal dispute between Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources and his elder brother Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries over the gas, off the coast of Andhra Pradesh.
Last month, the Bombay High Court had asked Reliance Industries to supply 28 million units of gas from the fields to Reliance Natural Resources for 17 years at $2.34 per unit after assigning 12 million units to a state-run power utility NTPC.
But Reliance Industries challenged the verdict in the Supreme Court, which heard the case July 20 and fixed Sep 1 as the next date of hearing. It also asked all parties to file their replies on the government position on the matter by then.
During the discussions in parliament Thursday, Deora had ruled out a government takeover of the distribution of Krishna-Godavari gas.
"The old days of nationalisation are gone," the minister told the Rajya Sabha during a calling attention motion after some members, led by Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Tapan Kumar Sen, suggested a state takeover of the gas distribution.
In a written the minister also said the government will examine proposal to fix a uniform domestic price for natural gas, based on where the hydrocarbon asset has been discovered.
"A study to consider the feasibility of having a uniform cost price regime is being undertaken, the report of which is expected to be made available within three months."
Monday, June 15, 2009
RNRL wins legal tussle over gas supply
Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL) will get assured gas supply of 28 million metric standard cubic metre per day (mmscmd) from the Krishna-Godavari basin for 17 years, the Bombay High Court ruled Monday.
The court has also fixed the price at $2.34 per million British thermal unit (mmbtu).
RNRL had approached the court against Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) that had refused to give gas at $2.34 per mmbtu from the Krishna-Godavari basin.
The court has directed RIL to arrive at an arrangement along these lines within a month.
It has also said the Ambani brothers may consult their mother if there is any difficulty at arriving at a conclusion.
At 11.15 a.m., shares of RNRL were up 20 percent at Rs.105 while RIL shares fell 4 percent to Rs.2,258.
The court has also fixed the price at $2.34 per million British thermal unit (mmbtu).
RNRL had approached the court against Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) that had refused to give gas at $2.34 per mmbtu from the Krishna-Godavari basin.
The court has directed RIL to arrive at an arrangement along these lines within a month.
It has also said the Ambani brothers may consult their mother if there is any difficulty at arriving at a conclusion.
At 11.15 a.m., shares of RNRL were up 20 percent at Rs.105 while RIL shares fell 4 percent to Rs.2,258.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Anil Ambani firm ventures into animation education
The Anil Ambani group has forayed into animation education by launching the Big Animation Infotainment and Media School or Big Aims, a training institute in Pune.
"Big Aims is unique and a first-of-its kind," said Ashish Kulkarni, chief executive of Big Animation, the group company that launched the project and made the animated TV series "Little Krishna".
"It will be a big leap for freshers, amateurs and aspirants to migrate to a much higher level of training practised by major Hollywood studios like Dreamworks," Kulkarni told IANS over phone from Mumbai.
"We will train them and groom them to help learn the basics and principles of storytelling in animation and feature films," he added.
Starting June, Big Aims offers professional full-time one-year advanced courses in three-dimensional and two-dimensional films, as well as pre-production and post-production work.
"Big Aims is unique and a first-of-its kind," said Ashish Kulkarni, chief executive of Big Animation, the group company that launched the project and made the animated TV series "Little Krishna".
"It will be a big leap for freshers, amateurs and aspirants to migrate to a much higher level of training practised by major Hollywood studios like Dreamworks," Kulkarni told IANS over phone from Mumbai.
"We will train them and groom them to help learn the basics and principles of storytelling in animation and feature films," he added.
Starting June, Big Aims offers professional full-time one-year advanced courses in three-dimensional and two-dimensional films, as well as pre-production and post-production work.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Anil Ambani firm enters media outsourcing business
Adlabs Films, a cinema and entertainment services company in the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, Thursday announced its entry into the outsourcing industry for the media space with plans to employ 1,200 people within a year.
The new venture will primarily focus on two segments, digital restoration and content processing, as per the norms of Motion Pictures Association of America, and proposes to work out of 90,000 sq ft of space here. Some 300 employees are already on its rolls.
The group already has secured orders for 1,000 films preserved by the Pune-based National Film Archives of India and will help the valuable footage to migrate from analogue to digital and from physical to digital media, the company said.
"Globalisation of media services is well underway," said Adlabs chief executive Anil Arjun. "Coupled with the optical fibre network, the comprehensive services of media outsourcing enable a distinctive and complete offering to Adlabs' worldwide clients."
Over the past four months Adlabs has been transmitting several films over its optic fibre network to distribute films in the US. This opens the gate for similar services in India for global clients.
"The fibre backbone also means greater encrypted security, more flexibility, time savings and price advantages," the company said.
Adlabs also has one of India's largest chain of cinemas with 430 screens spread not just across the country but also in Malaysia and the US. It also has a major presence in film distribution space with offices in London, New York, Los Angeles and Kuala Lumpur.
The new venture will primarily focus on two segments, digital restoration and content processing, as per the norms of Motion Pictures Association of America, and proposes to work out of 90,000 sq ft of space here. Some 300 employees are already on its rolls.
The group already has secured orders for 1,000 films preserved by the Pune-based National Film Archives of India and will help the valuable footage to migrate from analogue to digital and from physical to digital media, the company said.
"Globalisation of media services is well underway," said Adlabs chief executive Anil Arjun. "Coupled with the optical fibre network, the comprehensive services of media outsourcing enable a distinctive and complete offering to Adlabs' worldwide clients."
Over the past four months Adlabs has been transmitting several films over its optic fibre network to distribute films in the US. This opens the gate for similar services in India for global clients.
"The fibre backbone also means greater encrypted security, more flexibility, time savings and price advantages," the company said.
Adlabs also has one of India's largest chain of cinemas with 430 screens spread not just across the country but also in Malaysia and the US. It also has a major presence in film distribution space with offices in London, New York, Los Angeles and Kuala Lumpur.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Anil Ambani group bags third ultra mega power project
The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group was Wednesday awarded its third ultra mega power project, set to come up at Tilaiya in Jharkhand with an investment of over Rs.12,000 crore (Rs.120 billion/$2.4 billion)."We have been awarded the Tilaiya project. We bid the lowest per unit cost of Rs.1.77. We will generate 4,000 MW," a senior official of Reliance Power told IANS after a high-powered committee named his company the winner.
Besides Reliance, four other companies had bid for the project. These included the state-run utility NTPC, Jindal Power, Lanco Infratech and Sterlite Energy. They were among the 11 that had met the pre-bid criteria, officials said.
The government had previously awarded three ultra mega power projects - two to Reliance Power at Sasan in Madhya Pradesh and Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and one to Tata Power at Mundra in Gujarat.
With the Tilaiya project also under its kitty, Reliance Power has a portfolio to generate over 30,000 MW of power in the country. The group is now developing as many as 14 medium and large-sized power projects, company officials said.
Of these, projects in western India will account for 12,220 MW, north for 9,080 MW, east for 4,000 MW, northeast for 2,900 MW and in the south for 4,000 MW.
The group's 7,480-MW project to be located at Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, not far from the national capital, is expected to be the world's largest gas-fired power project at a single location, officials said.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Anil Ambani group produces pact copy in court
Part of the much talked about Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Ambani brothers was placed in the Bombay High court Wednesday.
Ram Jethmalani, counsel for Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL), submitted the MoU along with an affidavit to the court.
To which Harish Salve, counsel for Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), said he had a right to cross-examine the document.
The two counsels united in saying that the contents of the documents should not be made public.
RNRL is relying on this MoU in its case against RIL to settle the terms of supply of gas from the Krishna-Godavari basin off the Andhra Pradesh coast by RIL to RNRL's power projects.
The MoU records the arrangement between the two brothers as part of the demerger scheme and also notes what needs to be done in future.
The high court has adjourned the hearing of the case till Oct 15.
According to the Anil Ambani group, RIL had contracted to supply 12 million standard cubic metres of gas per day (MMSCMD) to the state-run National Thermal Power Corp (NTPC) at $2.34 per unit, and it was agreed that if the gas was not supplied, it would be sold to RNRL.
RIL had also agreed to supply the next 28 MMSCMD of gas to his company for power and other projects, also at $2.34 million British thermal units (mmbtu), for 17 years, the group said.
"In other words, the supply of gas to Reliance Natural was contracted at the prevailing market price - determined through rigorous process of international competitive bidding and on the same terms and conditions as the NTPC contract," Anil Ambani had said recently.
The earlier interim order, in which the court restrained RIL from selling the gas or from entering into any contract with a third party, has lapsed. RIL was subsequently planning to start production from the basin.
The court had also restrained RIL from entering into contracts to sell the gas from this basin - known in official jargon as KG-D6 gas - with companies other than RNRL and the state-run National Thermal Power Corp (NTPC).
It had also asked the two sides to settle the dispute within four months, but they failed to reach an agreement within the stipulated timeframe.
RNRL has claimed at least half of the 80 million standard cubic metres of gas per day that is envisaged from the fields off the Andhra Pradesh coast - said to be the country's biggest source of hydrocarbons today.
Indo-Asian News Service
Ram Jethmalani, counsel for Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL), submitted the MoU along with an affidavit to the court.
To which Harish Salve, counsel for Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), said he had a right to cross-examine the document.
The two counsels united in saying that the contents of the documents should not be made public.
RNRL is relying on this MoU in its case against RIL to settle the terms of supply of gas from the Krishna-Godavari basin off the Andhra Pradesh coast by RIL to RNRL's power projects.
The MoU records the arrangement between the two brothers as part of the demerger scheme and also notes what needs to be done in future.
The high court has adjourned the hearing of the case till Oct 15.
According to the Anil Ambani group, RIL had contracted to supply 12 million standard cubic metres of gas per day (MMSCMD) to the state-run National Thermal Power Corp (NTPC) at $2.34 per unit, and it was agreed that if the gas was not supplied, it would be sold to RNRL.
RIL had also agreed to supply the next 28 MMSCMD of gas to his company for power and other projects, also at $2.34 million British thermal units (mmbtu), for 17 years, the group said.
"In other words, the supply of gas to Reliance Natural was contracted at the prevailing market price - determined through rigorous process of international competitive bidding and on the same terms and conditions as the NTPC contract," Anil Ambani had said recently.
The earlier interim order, in which the court restrained RIL from selling the gas or from entering into any contract with a third party, has lapsed. RIL was subsequently planning to start production from the basin.
The court had also restrained RIL from entering into contracts to sell the gas from this basin - known in official jargon as KG-D6 gas - with companies other than RNRL and the state-run National Thermal Power Corp (NTPC).
It had also asked the two sides to settle the dispute within four months, but they failed to reach an agreement within the stipulated timeframe.
RNRL has claimed at least half of the 80 million standard cubic metres of gas per day that is envisaged from the fields off the Andhra Pradesh coast - said to be the country's biggest source of hydrocarbons today.
Indo-Asian News Service
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