VZCZCXRO8302
RR RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHPW
DE RUEHNE #5003/01 3201247
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 161247Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9303
INFO RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI 1904
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA 1223
RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 4204
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 0996
RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 4686
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 4166
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RULSDMK/DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHDC
RHMFIUU/FAA NATIONAL HQ WASHINGTON DC
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHDC
RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 005003 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
USDOC FOR ITA/MAC/OSA/LDROKER/ASTERN/KRUDD 
DEPT OF ENERGY FOR A/S KHARBERT, TCUTLER, CZAMUDA, RLUHAR 
DEPT PASS TO USTR DHARTWICK/CLILIENFELD/AADLER 
DEPT PASS TO TREASURY FOR OFFICE OF SOUTH ASIA/ABAUKOL 
TREASURY PASS TO FRB SAN FRANCISCO/TERESA CURRAN 
STATE FOR SCA/INS AND EB/TRA JEFFREY HORWITZ AND TOM ENGLE 
USDA PASS TO DUS TERPSTRA, FAS/OCRA, RADLER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: BEXP EFIN EINV ECPS EINV EPET ETRD EAGR ELTN ENRG
EAID, SENV, IN 
SUBJECT: NEW DELHI WEEKLY ECON OFFICE HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEKs OF 
NOVEMBER 5 - 16, 2007 
 
NEW DELHI 00005003  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  (U) Below is a compilation of Economic highlights from Embassy 
New Delhi for the weeks of November 5-16, 2007. 
 
SUCCESSES FOR AES, VERIZON 
-------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) GOI Confirms Coal Field for U.S. Power Company AES:  AES 
received on November  6, 2007 final GOI Cabinet and Ministryof Coal 
approval for the allocation of the captive Sayag Coal Block in the 
Mand-Raigarh Coalfields in central/eastern India's coal-rich state 
of Chhattisgarh to supply fuel to AES' planned 1,000-1,200 Megawatt 
(MW) thermal power plant.  AES signed an MOU with the Chhattisgarh 
State Government in March 2006.   AES expects coal production and 
power production to start up in 2012.  AES is the only major power 
generation company with current (Orissa) and future (Chhattisgarh) 
projects in India, and other U.S. investors and power companies are 
watching the AES project to determine if India's power sector 
investment climate is favorable, following on several project 
failures during the 1990s.  AES thanked Embassy New Delhi's Economic 
and Commercial sections and Consulate General Mumbai for their 
support over the last two years with the Ministry of Coal and 
Ministry of Power. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Verizon Wins Long Distance Licenses: U.S. Telecom company 
Verizon Business announced on November 2, 2007 that India's Ministry 
of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) Department 
Telecommunications (DOT) had approved Verizons' applications for an 
International Long Distance (ILD) license (applied for on February 
7, 2007) and for a National Long Distance (NLD) license (applied for 
on May 21, 2007).  AT&T also provides ILD and NLD in India.  Verizon 
already holds an internet service provider (ISP) license and has 
various local internet protocol (IP) hubs.  Upon receipt of the 
ILD/NLD licenses, companies operating in India will benefit from 
direct access to Verizon's advance internet protocol communications 
portfolio. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Embassy New Delhi's Economic and Commercial Sections had 
press the MCIT/DOT for timely consideration of Verizon's license 
applications, culminating in Ambassador David C. Mulford's letter of 
September 18 to MCIT Minister Raja.  Minister Raja had been 
preoccupied with the telecom licensing and spectrum allocation 
policy controversies.  Verizon officials expressed their thanks for 
the support rendered by U.S. Embassy New Delhi, the State 
Department, and USDOC. 
 
NOVARTIS WINS BATTLE BUT 
UNLIKELY TO WIN THE WAR 
---------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Chennai High Court ruled on November 13 that a 
two-member bench of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) 
could hear Novartis's appeal against the decision of the Indian 
Designs and Patents Office to refuse a patent for its anti-cancer 
drug Glivec.  One of the lawyers involved in the case told Consulate 
Chennai that the order effectively blocked the participation of IPAB 
member S. Chandrasekaran, who headed the patent office when it 
rejected Glivec, before being appointed to the IPAB.  Novartis was 
opposed to Chandresekaran's participation as an IPAB member 
reviewing the Glivec case, arguing that he would be biased since he 
led the patent office that originally rejected Novartis's patent 
application.  The lawyer added that this judgment would also 
effectively end Chandrasekaran's participation in a number of cases 
before the IPAB.  However, the lawyer is still pessimistic about 
Novartis's chances for securing a patent for Glivec. 
 
FALLING DOLLAR ENCOURAGES 
PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES 
TO BILL IN EUROS 
------------------- 
 
NEW DELHI 00005003  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶6. (U) The continued weakening of the dollar against the rupee is 
encouraging some of South India's pharmaceutical companies to change 
their business practices.  These companies are now adopting the euro 
as their favored currency when making quotes to prospective clients. 
 The executive director at a facility that conducts cutting-edge 
research on pharmaceuticals told Consulate Chennai that his company 
now charged a premium if customers insist on dollar quotes, as a 
hedge against the risk of the dollar dropping even further.  The 
head of finance at one of India's largest bio-pharmaceutical 
manufacturers told Consulate Chennai that his company had adopted 
similar measures.  He said that realizations from dollar payments 
had dropped sharply, forcing the company to change the way it quotes 
prices for its services. 
 
TAMIL NADU ANNOUNCES 
NEW INDUSTRIAL POLICY 
---------------- 
 
¶7. (U) The Tamil Nadu (TN) government unveiled a new industrial 
policy on November 5 that outlines a plan to create 2 million jobs 
by 2011.  The plan focuses on enhancing the manufacturing sector, 
calling for it to increase to 27 percent of the state's GDP by 2011 
and 30 percent by 2015, up from 21 percent at present.  Seeking to 
avoid land-use conflicts between industrialists and farmers, the TN 
government also announced that it will develop over the next five 
years a "land bank" of 10,000 acres with "quality infrastructure" to 
provide space for industrial parks.  The government emphasized that 
it will avoid using "prime agricultural land" for this purpose. 
 
¶8.  (U) Visit New Delhi's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov/p/sa/newdelhi 
 
WHITE