Two timing

Now that Arun Shourie has denied there was anything wrong with the Mumbai Centaur resale, we now have news that a potential buyer has just c...

Written by Dilip Cherian

December 16, 2002 12:00 AM IST

4 min read

Now that Arun Shourie has denied there was anything wrong with the Mumbai Centaur resale, we now have news that a potential buyer has just completed, a secret survey of the recently disinvested Lodhi Hotel. Apparently the Aman resorts tycoon Adrian Zeccha is not exactly overjoyed at the way the Lodhi deal has developed. With one of his original partners already out of the deal and murmurs of dissent from inside his boardroom, the Aman man may be looking at other options. One of the Aman groups plans could be a really zingy top quality resort in Kerala. The unputdownable Capt Nair of the Leela group is apparently among those holding Adrian Zeccha8217;s hands in that deal. If it works out then Lodhi may be appropriate. After all, resold hotels provide windfall gains. And it8217;s the buyer after all, who has to beware.

Never say die but buy

Was it just the Swadeshi lobby attempting to keep the Ambanis out of more oil sector acquisitions? Word has it that corporate rivalry may have had its share of punch. With government floating a possibility that overseas bidders alone would get to buy HPCL, the petrochem group may have had to scrabble to set up their sales chain. Tycoon8217;s believe the proposal of keeping the Indian private sector out of the bidding, along with the public sector, is neither cast in stone nor likely to persist as policy. Mukesh Ambani8217;s visit to Delhi, with the backdrop of an address to Ficci, only increased speculation that Reliance was not going to have to give up the right to bid. In a globalised India, how could you distinguish between one corporate and another? Specially when we are sitting on a forex mountain.

Finding a match

When ITC raised its retirement age to 60, Yogi Deveshwar finds that his new term as chairman would continue till he completes his age limit of 60. With ITC going the government way, Yogi certainly has a happy innings ahead. Of course this required that the basic business of ITC must remain healthy. There has been a lot of buzz and speculation about others who will benefit. Anup Singh, a key boss man in the company8217;s critical tobacco division, also gets a breather. Yogi will heave a sigh of relief at this, because the appropriate successor for this slot hasn8217;t been firmed up yet. Since ITC8217;s future depends crucially on cigarette marketing, that8217;s probably a match that is vital to keep bottomlines fired up.

Talent spotting

The one tycoon who is acquiring talent with a newfound appetite is Anand Mahindra. While his dream project, the city slickers favoured vehicle, the Scorpio, firing up his sales, here8217;s a tycoon who is not sitting still. The man has plans to grow exponentially. Having got himself help in the finance area by grabbing Hemant Luthra some time ago, he8217;s now snapped up Raghu Murti to do business development. These corporate heavyweights will hopefully help Anand meet his own ambitious targets. It will also probably shake out some old timers who are now well past their sell by date. But for Mahindra it8217;s the next big idea that matters. Then the new talent he has acquired will have to perform the requisite miracles.

Dilip Cherian, runs a public affairs firm Perfect Relations. He is an economy watcher and tycoon tracker. None of the people he writes about are his clients. Your insider tales are welcome at dilipcheriannow-india.net.in

Tags: