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Kripa Raman

Bags contracts worth over $300 m in Dubai

Mumbai , June 18

A futuristic-looking presidential complex in Accra, Ghana; a cricket stadium in Guyana for the 2007 World Cup; the tallest residential building in India, 60 storeys high in south Mumbai ... the Shapoorji Pallonji group, best known for being the single largest private shareholder in Tata Sons with an 18.5 per cent stake, is quietly busy, cashing in on infrastructure opportunities both overseas and domestically.

"Till a couple of years ago, our overseas contracts were a negligible proportion of our business. But in 2-3 years, we are looking at anywhere between 25 per cent and 40 per cent of our contracts coming from overseas," said Mr S. Kuppuswamy, President & CEO of Shapoorji Pallonji Finance Ltd and Director, Afcons Infrastructure Ltd (a group company).

The $39.6-million contract that Shapoorji Pallonji & Co Ltd (SPCL) won for building the Seat of Government and Presidential Complex in Ghana is being funded by Exim Bank of India to the tune of over $30 million under its line of credit.

SPCL recently executed several EXIM-bank backed projects, including the Ebene Cyber City in Mauritius (an exhibition centre) and a hotel at Kabul for the Aga Khan Development Network.

But going ahead, the group would look at independent projects contracted in developing countries that go beyond the support of Exim bank's line of credit, said Mr Kuppuswamy.

Apart from the African region, the group is looking at countries in South-East Asia and the CIS nations.

In Dubai, the company has made a sort of re-entry after 30 years, winning contracts worth more than $300 million.

Afcons Infrastructure Ltd will be looking for large domestic port projects. "For the first time, we as a group have decided to participate in build-operate-transfer projects," said Mr Kuppuswamy.

SP & Co Ltd reported revenues of Rs 1,000 crore in 2005-06 and Afcons Rs 700 crore, with order bookings at Rs 2,800 crore and Rs 2,400 crore respectively.

With its strong emphasis on ports, Afcons is likely to surpass SPCL in revenues soon, said Mr Kuppuswamy.

The group's real estate division now has its focus on IT and ITES parks. The SP Infocity in Pune has found takers for all of its three million sq ft of space, he said. SP is planning more of its own IT parks, perhaps in Gurgaon, Chennai, and Kolkata.

Simultaneously, the company's 250-acre biotech park off Hyderabad, a joint venture with the Andhra Pradesh Government, will be augmented to provide for incubation space too.

This is where entrepreneurs will be provided plug-and-play space, where they will start at lab-stage, move to pilot stage, and later go commercial.

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