Canadian Solar signs technology transfer deal with Dutch Energy Research Center

Canadian Solar has signed a joint technology development and transfer agreement with Energy Research Center of the Netherlands to apply their technology for metal wrap-through cells to its production lines. read more

Danish and Dutch companies build the largest solar heating plant in the Netherlands

The Danish company Sunmark has contracted with one of the biggest Dutch energy companies, NV Nuon Energy, to supply and install more than 7,000 m2 of solar collectors for the largest solar heating plant in the Netherlands: “Almere Sun Island”, which will provide hot water for 2,700 households in the town of Almere. read more

Solar lantern lights up rural India’s dark nights

NEW DELHI — For more than 100 Indian villages cut off from grid electricity, life no longer comes to an end after dark thanks to an innovative solar-powered lantern that offers hope to the nation’s rural poor. read more

Indian government, solar industry interact on MNRE’s solar PV program

NEW DELHI, INDIA: September 1, 2009: India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) had recently announced a unified solar photovoltaic (SPV) program to promote the use of decentralised SPV systems for various applications in rural/ urban areas and SPV roof top systems for diesel saving in urban areas. read more

ING to raise EUR 7.5 billion to repay govt, restructure
The Dutch financial institution plans to sell off its insurance operations to pay back state aid that was extended to the group in October 2008.

The Hague – Dutch banking and insurance group ING said Monday it plans to restructure its business, selling off its insurance operations and raising up to EUR 7.5 billion to pay back government emergency funding.read more

Rabobank economists sees ‘rising’ turnover

Dutch companies will book a steady increase in turnover from next year, apart from firms in the construction sector, according to Rabobank economists.

‘There are signs that the worst may be behind us, although there are difficult periods ahead,’ said Paula Oud, head of the bank’s statistics unit. read more

Google searches 3G prospects in India

Google, the world’s largest search engine and one of the biggest internet brands, is understood to be eyeing opportunities in the third generation of mobile telephony, or 3G, in India.

Sources in the telecom industry say Google is looking at broadband wireless access, or BWA, in the country and may participate in the auction with an Indian partner. BWA is also known as Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, or WiMAX. read more

India, US agree on trade pact framework

NEW DELHI: India and the US on Monday agreed on a framework to promote trade and investment and hoped to sign an agreement soon, even as US Trade Representative Ron Kirk pressed for further opening up of India’s services sector, especially the financial market. read more

Green Reva is red rag for some Americans

WASHINGTON: The rubber hasn’t met the road yet but sparks are already flying. India’s electric car
Reva is receiving a torrid welcome in US after an announcement last week that it would be manufactured in upstate New York by an American collaborator. read more

Dutch-Singaporean water management project launched

The Netherlands - The Singaporean company Hyflux is to join forces with Dutch technology institute STW to improve processes to desalinate water. read more

The Netherlands - Economic Affairs Minister Maria van der Hoeven says EUR three million will be invested in the research programme.

Pension funds recover, but not yet enough

The Netherlands’ biggest pension funds have managed to boost their assets over the past few months but are still not at levels to allow an increase in pay-outs next year, news agency ANP reports. read more

Despite Doha, India pushes ahead with free trade

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India’s rising number of free trade agreements signals a commitment to more open markets, but the question remains whether such deals will smooth the way for Asia’s third-largest economy to sign a global trade pact.read more

Hiring gains steam after a lull

BANGALORE: After having remained tightly shut for almost a year, the job market doors are slowly reopening. There is buoyancy across industries and locations. Enterprises are hiring, internal and third-party HR professionals are back in action and employees who maintained a stay-put status have started looking out. read more

Dutch PM visits Singapore

Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende has begun a visit to Singapore. On Thursday morning local time he met President Sellapan Nathan and Prime Minister Lee Hsien. They discussed the economic crisis, water management and European-Asian relations.

During a visit to the Marina Barrage Dam, which has been developed and built by a number of Dutch companies, the Dutch prime minister announced that a street in Singapore would be named after Dutchman Albert Winsemius. Mr Winsemius was an important advisor to the authorities Singapore in the 1960s. read more

Mobile phone industry takes baby steps toward sustainability

Some mobile phone manufacturers and service providers finally say they intend to go green. After all ‘green’ is the buzzword these days. The phone industry must also have seen the ‘there-is-business-to-be-done’ sign.

Samsung, a big name in mobile phone manufacturing, have just launched several so-called Eco phones. They are handsets partially made with bio-plastics, solar panels for partially charging the batteries and extra features to save your batteries. So only ‘partial’ gains so far, but the company says that it’s going to invest 4 billion US dollars in research and development of environmentally friendly products in the next four years. read more

Deutsche Bank to buy parts of Dutch ABN Amro

The deal, which has yet to be approved by relevant parties and authorities, will see parts of the ABN Amro’s commercial banking activities being sold to the German bank.read more

Frankfurt – The biggest German bank, Deutsche Bank, said Tuesday it would buy parts of the state-owned Dutch lender ABN Amro’s activities in the Netherlands for an undisclosed amount.

India eyes Europe for textiles FDI

The textile ministry aims to increase foreign investment in the sector to meet the government target of attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) worth $6 billion by 2015. A trade delegation led by Textile Minister Dayanidhi Maran is going to Switzerland, Italy and Turkey next week to woo foreign players into the domestic textile industry.

The ministry had earlier commissioned a survey to identify countries with a potential for investment in India. The study carried out by Technopak has identified companies in Germany, Switzerland and France with a potential to invest in garment, apparel and textiles machinery. read more

Toyota to roll out hybrid Prius in India

Its official! Toyota will be unveiling its Prius hybrid for sale in India at the 2010 Auto Expo in Delhi next January. Speaking to ZigWheels.com
on the sidelines of the 41st Tokyo Motor Show, Kazuo Okamoto, vice chairman of the Toyota Motor Corporation, informed that the Prius will mark a gradual ramp up for Toyota in India. The Prius is the world’s best known and also best selling hybrid passenger car and the version Toyota intends to sell in the country would be the latest generation model which was launched as recently as May 2009 in Japan and has also been a raging hit in this eco-conscious motoring mad nation. read more

Economy to grow by 6.5%, forecasts PM’s panel

NEW DELHI: The economy is likely to grow by 6.5% in 2009/10 with inflation at around 6% by the end of March 2010, a government panel said on Wednesday.

The Prime Minister’s economic advisory council also forecast a consolidated fiscal deficit, which includes shortfalls at the state level, of 10.09% of GDP in the current fiscal year, compared with 8.6% last year, and the influential panel urged a return to fiscal consolidation. read more

Ahold sales rise 4.3% on price cuts

Ahold, owner of the Albert Heijn supermarket chain in the Netherlands and Stop&Shop in the US, said on Tuesday third-quarter sales were up 4.3% at just over €6bn.

Sales were up 5.5% at Stop&Shop (in euros) and 5.4% at Albert Heijn compared with the same quarter in 2008, Ahold said in a trading update. source. www.dutchnews.nl

DSB situation ‘untenable’, finance minister

Finance minister Wouter Bos hit back at claims that DSB bank had been ‘destroyed’ on Monday afternoon by saying the bank’s position was ‘untenable’.

‘DSB did not go bankrupt because no one would save it,’ Bos told a news conference. ‘DSB went bankrupt because it had serious problems.’

The bank was declared bankrupt on Monday morning after weekend efforts to bail it out failed. read more

Indian stocks attract Rs 34,300-cr foreign fund in Q2

NEW DELHI: Betting big on Indian stocks, one of the best among the emerging markets, foreign fund houses have invested a hefty Rs 34,300 crore during the second quarter of this fiscal.

During the July-September period, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) made a net investment of Rs 34,313 crore in equities, as per the data available with the market regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). read more

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian energy giant Reliance Industries is in preliminary talks with U.S.-based Valero Energy, Sunoco and Flying J to buy refineries, the Business Standard newspaper reported, citing unidentified sources.

Royal Dutch Shell’s three refineries in Europe are also on the company’s radar, the sources told the paper. read more

POLL - China, India, S’pore to lead Asia growth in 2010

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Asia’s economic recovery is on a firmer footing than three months ago with China set to easily reach its 8 percent growth target this year and expand 9 percent in 2010, while trade-reliant Singapore and Taiwan will see a sharp turnaround next year, a Reuters poll shows. read more

Airtel launches mobile comics portal
NEW DELHI: Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Sunday announced the launch of India’s first-ever mobile comics portal on its mobile entertainment portal Airtel Live.
The service can be accessed on GPRS-enabled handsets (GPRS or general packet radio service is a type of wireless communication service). read more

Housing market shows signs of improvement

The number of homes changing hands in the third quarter of 2009 fell 23% compared with the same period in 2008 while prices were down almost 5%, the estate agents’ association NVM said on Thursday.

But compared with the previous quarter, house prices were unchanged. This is a sign of ‘cautious recovery’, the organisation said. The average price paid for a home is now €229,000. read more

Port of Rotterdam Authority and Friends of the Earth Netherlands want to aim for 80% reduction in CO2 by 2050
The Port Authority Rotterdam and Friends of the Earth Netherlands want the maritime shipping industry to drastically reduce its CO2 emissions: 30% by 2020 and closer to 80% by 2050, compared to 1990. Friends of the Earth Netherlands and the Port Authority are making this appeal in the run-up to the international environment conference that is to be held in December in Copenhagen. Hans Smits, Port Authority CEO: “Shipping was not included in the Kyoto Protocol. But it is particularly important to make international agreements in a sector that is, by definition, international.” Frank Köhler, director of Friends of the Earth Netherlands: “This sector is responsible worldwide for 3% of CO2 emissions, and this percentage will only increase further if no measures are taken.” read more

Bill Gates puts cash into Wageningen project

A charitable foundation owned by Microsoft founder Bill Gates has put almost $20m into a Wageningen University project to boost food production, the university said on Thursday.

The project will allow farmers in parts of Africa to improve the fertility of the soil by spreading a bacteria which boosts nitrogen levels. These bacteria form colonies in nodules they create on the roots of peas, beans, and related species which are able to convert nitrogen from the atmosphere. read more

India, China & Brazil are future auto hubs

New Delhi: India, China, Mexico, Brazil and eastern European countries will soon emerge as ‘new Detroits’ in the global automotive industry on the back of low costs of labour and rising customer base, a report by Deloitte’s Global Manufacturing Industry Group said.

According to the report, ‘A new era: Accelerating towards 2020-an automotive industry transformed’, high-cost exporting countries will witness domestic capacity dipping and vehicle production migrating to low-cost centers across India and China and other locations in the regional trade zones of North American Free Trade Agreement and the European Union.

“While cost of labour in the emerging markets continues to be a fraction of that in the developed world, there is a growing demand from these countries. To take advantage of the increasing population in emerging markets, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) will continue to shift more of their production to be closer to their biggest source of new customers,” Kumar Kandaswami, senior director, Deloitte, said. read more

Rabobank to set up agri biz-specific PE fund in India

Rabobank Group, along with three other international finance institutions, have decided to enter the agriculture business in India by setting up a private equity fund focused on the country’s agri-business.

The $100 million fund aims to boost the growth of India’s agri-business sector by making value-added private equity investments with focus on small and medium enterprises and companies in rural areas, the company said in a statement on Friday.

The other three agencies involved in the equity fund are International Finance Corporation, Netherlands-based Finance for Development and Germany-based bank DEG. read more

Rabobank, which conceptualised and sponsored the fund, will provide 25% of the committed capital.

http://www.financialexpress.com/news/steady-expansion-in-domestic-demand-fm/527062/
New Delhi: The Indian economy has seen steady expansion in domestic demand while savings and investment rates have picked up, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Friday.

The impact of the global economic crisis hit the Indian economy harder than expected and growth slowed to 6.7 per cent in 2008/09 from rates of 9 per cent or more in the previous three years. read more

Worst is over: PM on inflation

MUMBAI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday said he expected a good rabi crop and added that the “worst is over” vis-a-vis the spiralling prices.

Speaking here on the last day of campaigning for the Maharashtra assembly elections, Manmohan Singh said a good October-February rabi crop would positively influence the inflation scenario. read more

Philips Q3 net profit triples

Electronics group Philips reported a better than expected third-quarter figures on Monday as a result of cost reductions but said its short term outlook was still ‘cautious’. read more

India to grow at 6.3% in FY10: Montek

New Delhi: India’s economy is likely to grow at 6.3 per cent or more in the year to March 2010, a top policy adviser said on Monday.

Montek Singh Ahluwalia, deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, also said annual inflation was likely to be around 5 per cent by end March. read more

Netherlands is ranked sixth best place to live

The Netherlands has been ranked as the sixth most desirable place to live, according to a recent United Nations research.Paris - The Netherlands has been nominated as the sixth best place in the world to live, reveals a United Nations research released Monday.

Norway retains the number one spot in the annual United Nations human development index while China made the biggest strides in improving the well-being of its citizens. read more

Indian cos best in terms of employee satisfaction: Study

NEW DELHI: Indian companies rank top among global peers in employee satisfaction, reflecting their successful business practices, says a study.

The findings are part of a report, ‘Driving Success Through Performance Excellence and Employee Engagement,’ by research arm of leading global HR solutions provider Kenexa. read more

Car sales down, but scrapping scheme helps

September car sales in the Netherlands were 17 percent down on last year. Car dealer umbrella groups Bovag and RAI say that the Dutch bought 34,000 new cars last month, against 41,000 in 2008.

The Netherlands - September car sales in the Netherlands were 17 percent down on last year. Car dealer umbrella groups Bovag and RAI say that the Dutch bought 34,000 new cars last month, against 41,000 in 2008. In August, the year-on-year decline was even steeper, measuring 29 percent. read more

Indian R&D centres design power chip of global standard

BANGALORE: A demand slump in the global semiconductor industry notwithstanding, Indian R&D centres of global chip majors are playing an increasingly crucial role in designing products for global rollouts. Over the past few months, Indian centres have seen greater proportion of value-added semiconductor design being carried out, while in some cases, the captives have handled end-to-end product design.more

Better governed Indian firms enjoy more stable profit: S&P

Better governed firms are rewarded with higher market valuations, are less leveraged, have greater capacity to service their debts and pay dividends and enjoy more stable profit margins compared to their peers, a new Standard & Poor’s research has revealed.

A 4-year study of nearly 300 companies listed on the National Stock Exchange of India found evidence of a positive and significant relationship between corporate governance practices and company performance, an S&P release in Dubai said on Wednesday. more

Indian economy to grow 5.4% in 2009: IMF

ISTANBUL/NEW DELHI: The International Monetary Fund on Thursday retained its projection for Indian economic growth at 5.4 per cent in 2009,
implying a slower growth in the second half of this calendar year.

In its twice-yearly World Economic Outlook released in Istanbul, the Fund lowered the projection for the next year by 0.1 per cent to 6.4 per cent. more

The Netherlands retains its leading position as the top healthcare system in Europe

The Netherlands - The Netherlands has been named as having the best healthcare system in Europe in the 2009 Euro Health Consumer Index (EHCI).

This is the second year in a row the Netherlands came in first in the healthcare study. Its leading position is followed by Denmark, Iceland and Austria.

The index which compares the healthcare systems of 32 European countries started in 2005. It is published by the Health Consumer Powerhouse of Sweden supported by the European Commission. more

‘Deutsche bank in ABN Amro talks again’
Thursday 01 October 2009

The finance ministry is again in talks with Deutsche Bank about taking over some parts of ABN Amro, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Thursday, quoting sources.

Brussels has ordered the Netherlands to sell off parts of ABN Amro or Fortis in order to get the green light to merge the two nationalised banks. A deal with Deutsche Bank to buy HBU fell apart last week and the finance ministry now has until October 2 to come up with an alternative deal.

Talks are also underway with BNP Paribas. The paper said on Tuesday sources suggest the finance ministry has asked BNP Paribas if it would be interested in buying Fortis’ commercial banking and finance units. source: www.dutchnews.nl

India to invest US$18 bn in ports

India is likely to invest US$18 billion in ports and over US$4 billion in its shipbuilding industry in the next five-to-seven years, shipping industry players said at a meet here. Shipping Corporation of India’s Chairman and Managing Director, S Hajara, who spoke at the meet, said that shipping should be brought under the infrastructure ambit. He called for a relaxation in the present cabotage law to allow shipping into the infrastructure sector.read more

Indians go in search of El Dorado

The Solvent Extractors Association , the Indian oilseeds industry body, has formed a consortium of 18 companies to acquire 10,000 hectares of
prime farmland in a $40-million deal in Uruguay and Paraguay to cultivate oilseeds and pulses. The association CEO B V Mehta said they are hamstrung only by access to finance, otherwise they have it all sewn up. read more

Johnson & Johnson takes Crucell stake

Monday 28 September 2009

US pharmaceuticals company Johnson & Johnson has taken an 18% stake in Dutch biotechnology firm Crucell for €301m.

The two companies have also agreed to work together in the field of developing vaccines, including flu vaccines, they said in a statement.

The American firm has also agreed not to expand its stake for three years without Crucell’s go ahead.

Royal Bank of Scotland analyst Mutlu Gundogan told the Financieele Dagblad the alliance was surprising because Crucell does not need the money and the deal reduces the scope for a full takeover.

ABN Amro Fortis merger still the aim: Bos

Monday 28 September 2009

The decision to merge nationalised banks ABN Amro and Fortis remains unchanged, despite the collapse of the sale of some units to Deutsche Bank, finance minister Wouter Bos told parliament on Monday.

A team from the two banks and finance ministry officials are now looking at alternatives to the sale of HBU and have been given until October 2 by the European Commission to come up with a solution, Bos said.

Many members of staff have been living in uncertain times with regard to their professional future since 2007 [when Fortis took over parts of ABN Amro], Bos said. ‘It is important that the major shareholder [the state] takes a clear position. Nobody would be helped if the state started moving in a different direction.’

Brussels had ordered the sale of HBU because the merged bank would be too dominant in the Dutch market. But last week, competition commissioner Neelie Kroes said the banks could look for alternative divestments.