Author: Ben Debski

Is Dell looking to buy it’s way out of PCs?

Posted on by Ben Debski

This quarter has seen Dell buy Wyse Technology, a private company specialising in cloud computing and related technologies.  The move is being seen by market analysts as an indication that Dell is further strengthening its moves to expand from being a computer hardware manufacturer to encompass a wider range of information technology products and services. Given the expertise at Wyse Technology, the newly acquired company, the additions to the Dell portfolio seem likely to involve data management and services.

Wyse Technology established a particular reputation in the market for thin clients, and so the specific value that the acquisition will bring to Dell seems to lie in the potential for further developing the enterprise solutions managed by the company, and also expanding operations in the field of desktop virtualisation and the burgeoning technology of cloud computing. Thin clients generally operate on the basis of a connection to cloud computing resources and frequently do not operate a separate hard drive, meaning that such a client does not save data locally, which brings a number of logistical and security benefits in the design and use of the devices.

The acquisition of Wyse will therefore almost certainly be seen as a move by Dell to beef up its competitive edge over rivals in the cloud computing market. These rivals notably include Microsoft, with whom Dell cooperates to a significant extent in its hardware manufacturing operations.

On the enterprise market, Wyse Technology has been offering a portfolio of services and products that enable enterprises to create and manage their own IT infrastructure centrally, making use of cloud computing know-how. These elements of the portfolio are now open to Dell for expansion and possibly for further innovation, bringing a possibly wider enterprise market into play for Dell as a whole, and enabling Dell to offer a wider selection of services for existing corporate and enterprise customers.

Another aspect of the acquisition is the attention that Wyse Technology has been giving to incorporating devices other than traditional laptop and desktop computers into its product and service range. This means that the new combination of Dell and Wyse offerings can expand the Dell PC base into devices such as smartphones and tablets, which are increasingly popular as mobile computing devices for enterprises, as well as for private users.

Statements to the media by the management of Wyse Technology – which is based in California – make it clear that the operations of the company are also to benefit from the new input by Dell, especially given the size of Dell in terms of both market and resources.  It seems likely that the Wyse product and service offering will continue to be expanded under the Dell umbrella. This should benefit both companies involved in the new deal in terms of integrating the respective existing technologies as complementary aspects in the creation of a wider portfolio of computing services.

Who got Game?

Posted on by Ben Debski

An announcement made in the run up to Easter revealed the details behind an acquisition of the majority share in Game Group. The purchase of the holding has been made by investment company OpCapita, and looks set to make it possible for Game to continue operations. The deal is being touted as a rescue plan for Game, which has recently been struggling with financial difficulties. Game Group has built up debts with a number of lenders, including high-street bank the Royal Bank of Scotland, and although the lenders were also considering a takeover, it is widely understood that they approved the OpCapita purchase before it went through.

As the company’s debts increased, the collapse of Game left it owing substantial sums not just to the banks, but also to suppliers, landlords, and the tax authorities. The value of the company on the stock market also collapsed, leaving shareholders with a loss.

Game operates a network of retail outlets in the UK and abroad. Although it seems that a number of these will need to be shut permanently, leading to total redundancies that are reckoned to be in the region of 2,000, the package put together by OpCapita for Game should also make it possible for more than 300 of the shops to keep trading. This will save the jobs of an estimated 3,100 staff members.

Administrators PwC stepped in just as Game had been considering expanding into a wider international market. The troubles have followed a period in which the group was attempting to build a wider international appeal, with attempted growth in the number of outlets and sales beyond the shores of the UK. Analysts have also pointed to the high fixed costs that have been on the Game Group balance sheet. Many industry commentators now believe that the company will need to adapt its operations and sales models in order to reduce costs, and will possibly move trade more towards the online market in the hope of competing with a number of its competitors in the highly trend conscious video gaming market.

The new management board of Game is being put together by OpCapita, and the company has appointed the former chief executive of Halfords Group, David Hamid, as chairman of Game to oversee the restructuring of operations. OpCapita has a track record of acquiring and saving struggling retail businesses in the UK, and another recent acquisition by the investment company is Comet, the high-street consumer electronics chain.

Statements by the managerial team behind the acquisition of Game make it clear that the intention is to retain video gaming as the core business of Game, and the focus will be on using the substantial market share gained by the company to produce a profitable bottom line.

Indian central bank asks to raise NPA levels

Posted on by Ben Debski

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been reported as circulating a request to banks in the country to improve their efficiency in managing so-called stressed assets. The level of non-performing assets has increased throughout the financial period at the start of the year. The announcement was issued as the first quarter drew to a close, at the end of March, and an official is quoted as saying that although the RBI has concerns about the ability of banks to manage NPA, there is no immediate alarm about the developing situation.

A number of factors have been contributing to the rising NPA levels that are being seen on the balance sheets of banks in India. These are tied to continuing difficult financial conditions on both national and international markets, with India being far from alone in coping with the stresses of slow economic growth and the effects of a global recession. Among the specific contributory factors to the situation is a slowing of economic activity that is being attributed to a policy of increasing interest rates in India. Figures seem to show that this issue particularly affects state-run banks as opposed to private institutions.

Some estimates have put the predicted NPA levels in the Indian financial system as a whole, at above three per cent for the current financial period. This is a rise from a recorded level of less than two and a half per cent previously. Among state-run institutions, State Bank of India (SBI), which is the biggest provider of loans in India, has seen a significant short-term rise in NPA levels, with a near ninety percent rise in the provision of such funds.

However, the growth in corporate debt recast, which is estimated to have tripled during the current financial period, is widely seen as the main factor behind the request for action by the central bank, as it seeks to ensure proper management of the growing proportion of NPA levels.

The deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India is quoted as saying that the principle improvement that is required from banks lies in information systems. At the same time, he was also reported to voice concerns over the channels that a number of banks are using to sell insurance products, although he did not reportedly make a direct link between the two observations.

The central bank seems to hope that the improvements that it has requested can be achieved through use of the current systems in place, but with better and stronger database management. In particular, the granularity of data in terms of the regions and sectors in which NPA levels are recorded is said to be a concern. An enhancement is likely to lead to improved quality in the overall data that is available, and for which the RBI has a great responsibility at national level.

Cloud technology to create workforce

Posted on by Ben Debski

The IDC report was commissioned by the software giant Microsoft and shows that as well as generating jobs, cloud technology will also increase global business revenues by a healthy $1.1trn. The new jobs will be mainly created in Asia, where it is estimated by IDC that over 10 million opportunities will be introduced as a result of cloud technology, with North America due to generate 1.17 million jobs.

Cloud technology is already having a positive global impact on the jobs market. A recent report in The Belfast Telegraph, revealed that the UK’s Jobs and Enterprise Minister, Richard Bruton, has just announced a €1.2m investment into a new cloud computing research centre in Ireland as a result of the government’s ‘Action Plan for Jobs’.

The IDC report explains how cloud technology will promote employment growth throughout both private and public sectors. Though, a recent article in The Wall Street Journal points out that since Microsoft is a leading cloud technology developer with its Azure platform, it is in the company’s interests to predicate a healthy growth in the jobs market. Rob Preston writing in Information Week goes further and suggests that the announcement about new jobs fails to point out that “ advances in IT and other fields permanently destroy some jobs and sends others offshore.”

UK recruitment agencies are already looking at this IT skills shortage and are currently offering training programmes in cloud technology. Other UK companies are looking for software engineers and consultants to work on new cloud technology programmes. One job agency is currently advertising 3,076 vacancies in the sector.

The IDC report claims that 226,000 jobs will be created in the UK, thanks to cloud technology, between 2011-2015. The report also analyses the different global sectors that will benefit from cloud technology and the sectors where the new jobs might be created.  These include 1.4 million jobs in banking, communications and media, 2.4 million and 1.3 million in ‘discreet’ manufacturing industries.

Not all industry insiders are confident that cloud technology will deliver that many new jobs. Some commentators feel that business models are just as important as new technology and that for every new job created many others will go.  The departments where job losses might be experienced will include, purchasing, IT personnel, and a reduction in blue collar roles. One commentator believes that cloud technology will actually cut the global workforce by 10 million; therefore the prospect of new jobs only rises to 4 million, using the IDC figures. It would appear that the jury is still out in the number of jobs that will be created as a result of cloud technology but Forbes suggests that the possibilities of this technology are endless and that companies hosting their own services for their own customers may create future employment.

Sweeping changes for pharmas?

Posted on by Ben Debski

The pharmaceutical industry is a complex global concern and is currently in a state of flux. Many drug patents are up for renewal, the most famous of these is the cholesterol reduction medication, ‘Lipitor’ which is no longer exclusively manufactured by Pfizer, the world’s largest pharmaceutical company. R&D costs have grown and many of the major pharmaceutical companies are thinking of restructuring in a bid to maintain a healthy balance sheet.

Despite Pfizer’s continued success as the world’s leading pharmaceutical company many industry observers believe that the company has ‘grown too big to succeed.’ Despite having posted revenues of $58,523m for 2010/11, the company had announced in 2011 that it was going to concentrate on profit-making drugs and research and that its other R&D centres would be closed. The loss of the Lipitor patent in December 2011 will have an effect on the company’s profits though other new drug developments are in the pipeline, including research into the insulin market.

Swiss giant Novartis has diversified and is expanding its non-branded business. Novartis, in common with the other pharmaceutical giants will face problems as various licences and patents expire but the company believes that its diversification strategy and its new developments, mainly the FDA approved ‘Gilenya’ for multiple sclerosis, along with many other new products, will help the company maintain its healthy profits. In 2010/11 the company posted a total turnover of $50,324m.

Global management firm Booz & Co has produced a number of reports examining the future of the pharmaceutical industry. In December 2011 the company published its ‘2012 Healthcare – Pharmaceutical Industry Perspective.’ The main thrust of the report indicates that today’s giants in the industry will be facing huge problems in the future.  The report recommends strong investment in the area of R&D as this will help companies sustain their momentum with the development of new drugs to replace the profit leaders once the patents expire. The report also indicates that large pharmaceutical companies should be more responsive to regional demand and able to respond to global change far more quickly and efficiently than at present.

In the UK the fortunes of AstraZeneca continue to fluctuate. The company is a very good example of what happens when patents expire and when the R&D hasn’t produced sufficient new research to replace the lapsed patent. The ‘Investors Chronicle,’ highlights the fact that the company paid more attention to budgets than to research and this might be one of the main reasons for the company’s decline.  AstraZeneca itself realises its problems and is set to outsource a large volume of its R&D work to outside companies.

Price pressures in the eurozone have also contributed to the industry’s; problems. Greece cut its drugs budget by €1bn in 2010 and the country has further reduced its expenditure in 2011 by €1.25bn. This picture of government cuts is one of truly global proportions which is affecting all companies in the pharmaceutical sector.

3M builds nanotech natural gas tanks

Posted on by Ben Debski

3M may have a solution to the problem, however; it says it has developed a new composite material that is capable of withstanding the required pressure, but which can still be made small enough to fit into a vehicle. With the new material, carbon and epoxy are woven together to form a very strong fibre and then nanoparticles are added to increase both its strength and stiffness. Finally, the inside walls of the tank are lined with plastic.

One disadvantage of natural gas is that it must be stored under high pressure, meaning that the tanks must be very strong. The tank, whether in the vehicle or underground at a service station, must be able to withstand pressures of 3,500 lbs per sq in. The cost of manufacturing these tanks raises the price of the fuel, as well as the vehicle into which the fuel goes.

If the new technology proves to be successful it could open the door to increased use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), by standard automobiles rather than just buses and fleet vans. In addition, other fuels that require storing under pressure could come into use via this same technology, for example hydrogen. Hydrogen must be kept cold, as well as under pressure and these requirements have prevented it from being used as anything more than a curiosity fuel. 3M’s work could move this fuel out of the theoretical realm and into practical applications.

Partnering with Chesapeake Energy, 3M is moving forward with plans to create a CNG tank that incorporates the new nanotechnology. Chesapeake, a leader in natural gas production, is a welcome partner and hopes to gain new, low-cost, lightweight composite tanks for storage of their product. The new tanks have the potential to be 10-20 percent lighter and hold 10-20 percent more fuel, all at a lower cost than the heavier reinforced tanks used today.

Chesapeake’s promise of an initial $10m investment will be channeled through Chesapeake NG Ventures Corporation (CNGV), a separate corporation tasked with investment in alternative fuel companies and ventures. A total of $1bn has been promised over the next 10 years.

Natural gas producers welcomed the news; should the product be commercially viable, it could open up vast new markets for the fuel, most of it domestically. If more personal vehicles could be converted to CNG, it would help reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil. Should it work in the US, natural gas producers around the world would soon follow suit, potentially changing the baseline of fuel requirements in many countries.

New crops for tired climates

Posted on by Ben Debski

The hope is that this genetically-engineered seed will provide farmers with an alternative when traditional grain products fail due to lack of water.

The initial large-scale tests will be run throughout the Midwest, in states from South Dakota to Texas. Monsanto’s new corn is notable because it is the first genetically modified product to be approved by the United States Department of Agriculture, rather than a herbicide or pesticide. The USDA decided against imposing regulations on the corn, giving tacit approval for its commercial use.

Environmental watchdog groups, like the Union of Concerned Scientists, are taking a wait and see approach, but note that even if the crop delivers as promised, it may be too little, too late. The effects of climate change are already being felt, from drastic weather to the drought conditions that are plaguing food growing areas throughout the world. Crop yields are dropping and farmers are being forced out of business and whether one genetically engineered crop can save them is doubtful.

UCS also points out that the drought tolerance of a crop and its water use efficiency (WUE) are tied together, but that is not necessarily true; the two traits are controlled by two different genes and whether Monsanto’s genetic modifications have affected both remains to be seen. Monsanto has not addressed that issue in its publicity and the papers filed with the USDA do not go into that particular aspect of the corn’s genetic modification.

Having said that, even a small improvement may provide some degree of much needed relief to thirsty farmers. The use of corn-based products has more than doubled in the past 30 years and an ever- growing demand for ethanol means that demand is likely continue unabated, for many years to come. That means there is likely to be a substantial market for this product in the farmer’s range of crops. Monsanto is also being careful to moderate expectations of the product, which will be marketed under the name DroughtGard. “This isn’t a product that we’re expecting to grow in the desert,” says Monsanto spokeswoman, Danielle Stuart. Initial testing is therefore to be carried out in areas that meet the company’s guidelines for the product, which include moderate drought conditions.

Monsanto has said that it hopes to have many more products in its development pipeline as it moves forward and some are likely to be drought-resistant varieties of other crops. If the trials of DroughtGard corn are successful, it could pave the way for even more drought resistant strains of corn and perhaps a broader range of grains and vegetables. As climate change continues to impact farming and food production around the globe, it is likely that a range of solutions will be required and drought-resistant crops are likely to be just a small part of that arsenal.

Leadership Edge to remould management

Posted on by Ben Debski

‘The Leadership Edge’ has been launched by the Wharton School’s Aresty Institute. The programme was specifically designed to assist executives who have to make the transition into management positions. The staff who will present the new course are all currently teaching on the MBA programme at the San Francisco campus.

Nancy Rothbard, Faculty Director of The Leadership Edge and Management Professor at Wharton, said that one of the most important moments in a career is when the transition has to be made to leadership. She continued: “Executives who have already succeeded as high-level individual contributors need new skills to move into management.”

Many of them learn “on the fly” she says, but it is of course preferable to start off with the most effective techniques and tools. Trying to undo bad practices later on takes a great deal of time and diminishes your impact as a leader.

The director of the Graduate Leadership Programme at Wharton, Jeff Klein, concurs. He says that Wharton’s new programme will assist executives to broaden their skills and improve their expertise to include running a company. Wharton will work on the key organisational and personal skills to assist students to make the transition.

The Wharton School is an initiative of the University of Pennsylvania, which was founded 131 years ago. At the time, it was the first collegiate business school in the US. It is recognised globally as a leader in the fields of ongoing innovation and intellectual leadership.

The Leadership Edge involves group discussions, lectures, assessments, projects, experiential learning and networking to ensure that students acquire and are able to apply new skills and concepts.

According to Klein, Wharton’s leadership programme stands on three pillars; entering a leadership community, becoming a student of leadership and looking for and accepting ‘stretch’ experiences. The emphasis in the programme is on the third pillar. He says it was critical for novice managers to become involved in experiences where they can test the concepts they have been learning. Only then it will become a reality to them.

The Wharton programme is presented by outstanding members of the university’s faculty; all professors who teach at their renowned MBA programme. They include experts such as Ethan Mollick, who is a cutting-edge researcher on innovation and entrepreneurship and Sigal Barsade, an authority on emotional intelligence.

Todd Henshaw, the former director of military leadership at the US West Point Military Academy and John Kanengieter, who trained space shuttle crews at NASA have also joined the programme as lecturers.

Those who become students at The Leadership Edge will acquire skills on how to lead others, use emotional intelligence, how to improve conflict management abilities, how to set up and lead high-performance teams, how to properly communicate your strategy to others and how to manage growth.

The emphasis throughout, is on ‘actionable knowledge’, that which can be applied in real life situations.

As Professor Rothbard so eloquently puts it: “We’re preparing new leaders to step back into their roles on Monday morning knowing exactly what they’re going to do different and better.”

News Limited rejects print regulation

Posted on by Ben Debski

The report, entitled, “Independent Inquiry into the Media and Media Regulation” has suggested that the government should set up a news media regulator in order to monitor all news media, including radio, online services and TV as well as the printed medium.

Commentators argue that Australia already has its own press council and there is no need for further regulation. Currently the Australian Press Council is a self-monitoring body that was set up by the newspaper industry to monitor the practices of print journalism.  The judge has also recommended that if the government doesn’t set up an independent statutory body then the Press Council should have its budget increased to $2m per year.

Fairfax Media, News Limited, APN News and Media, and Western Australian Newspapers are to join forces in a bid to format their response to the Finkelstein report. News Limited’s, CEO, Kim Williams said: “The spectre of a government funded overseer of a free press in an open and forward looking democracy like ours cannot be justified.”

Not all media commentators are against the idea of a statutory body. A recent article in the Business Spectator points out that a new government body may well mean that any complaints against the press would have to be taken more seriously than at present and that “frivolous and vexatious” complaints would have to be filtered.

The battle against the report is also raging online. Websites argue that each time they publish something on the net they adhere to the defamation laws as well as ensuring that all comments are moderated. One particular website, Vexnews, believes that the call for the inquiry into press regulation lies with a lack of accurate data and that the politician Bob Brown, allegedly, was one of the main proponents of the inquiry following some less than complimentary articles in papers published by News Limited.

Understandably the news media in Australia is angry about the proposed changes but the opposition doesn’t end with the press. Some political observers believe that the judge is attacking the inalienable right for the country to have a free and independent press. The Financial Review examines in depth the reasons behind the enquiry and also questions the motivation. The judge backed up his assertions against the Sydney Morning Herald by claiming that “at least two readers” had complained against an article in the newspaper.

Australian newspaper publishers and other news outlets have responded favourably to Judge Finkelstein’s recommendation that the Press Council be granted additional funding and the Council itself is in the process of implementing further changes, maybe this will suffice to ward off the threat of government censorship.

Industry leaders utilise knowledge transfer

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Developing highly knowledgeable employees is important for all service sector businesses, but it is especially so for companies who sell advice, such as strategy consultants and law firms. The effective recycling of expertise and experience into new solutions is what allows the firm to tackle problems that other companies cannot handle internally. The leading firms in these sectors owe their positions to the comparative advantage successful knowledge transferring provides.

The major law and consulting firms work to provide an encouraging environment for knowledge transfer. Employees are encouraged to move between departments and offices to develop a range of experiences and to cross-pollinate ideas. International law firm White & Case even makes it compulsory for its trainee solicitors to take a secondment abroad. The unity of the whole firm is often stressed and differences between sub-organisations played down to prevent the rivalries that can hamper knowledge transfers. The successful strategy consultants, such as the Boston Consulting Group, also pride themselves on an innovative culture and an acceptance of new ideas.

Effective knowledge transfers on their own do not necessarily mean that the firm will establish a comparative advantage. Knowledge that can be transferred within the firm can often be transferred to its competitors. Once the knowledge has spread through the industry, the original firm’s edge is eroded. This is particularly the case in manufacturing companies where knowledge is embedded in tools that can be easily replicated. Knowledge embedded in employees is more likely to remain within the firm instead of leaking out to rivals. A successful law firm like Clifford Chance or a consulting firm like McKinsey rely on the human capital of their employees. However, this is only built up at great expense with training and experience. They need a way of ensuring long-term loyalty. This is why firms in these sectors are usually structured as partnerships. The possibility of a lucrative partnership keeps the associates loyal; without this possibility they would more readily jump ship to a rival firm taking the knowledge investment with them, leaving firms to free ride on one another and be reluctant to invest in training themselves. A firm like Slaughter and May, is even able to invest heavily in the knowledge of its employees and develop lawyers with multiple and even cross-departmental specialisms. This allows the firm to tackle a range of client problems despite being much more compact than many of its rivals.

Investment banks manifest a completely different approach. When advisory work, which was reliant on embedded employee knowledge, was the dominant source of profits, many investment banks were structured as partnerships. When trading became a large source of profits, access to capital became more important than passing the knowledge of a banker’s extensive contacts or experience of past flotations. Gradually the major investment banks went public; the last major partnership, Goldman Sachs, sold out in 1999.

However, some smaller advisory only banks, such as NM Rothschild and Perella Weinberg, have managed to survive. They pride themselves on being close-knit teams and developing well-rounded bankers who can leverage the experience of the senior partners. Effective knowledge transfers allow them to sell themselves to clients based on the quality of their advice.

SA water faces tough future

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South Africa’s water management strategy is currently on a knife edge, with
senior Sasol and Eskom managers warning that just one major drought over the next eight years in the catchment area of the Vaal River will pose a serious threat to the stability of the region’s agricultural and industrial output.

Ensuring adequate water supply to the Vaal catchment area is currently high on the agenda for water management teams in South Africa. Although long term plans to ease the situation are already in place, Phase II of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) is not scheduled to start delivering water to the Vaal until 2020. With deadlines on projects of this magnitude habitually over running, it is a distinct possibility that additional water may not reach the region until around 2021.

Although the region has not suffered a significant drought in recent years, enjoying good rainfall of late, long term rainfall patterns are notoriously difficult to predict, meaning a severe drought in the next decade is a distinct possibility.

Coal and oil giants Sasol believe that increased water use efficiency alone will not be enough to divert a crisis, should a drought occur. Andries Meyer, Sasol’s sustainable water manager, believes that increased liaison between national, provincial and local government is also essential, as is close co-operation between the public and private sectors. Meyer believes that government incentive schemes are the best method of promoting such public/private sector partnerships.

Electricity provider Eskom shares Sasol’s concerns, adding that competition for available water between large industrial and domestic users will become a political issue in the region, should a drought occur.

The area’s problems are exacerbated by massive water loss through leaks, thought to be in the region of 25-33 percent, and illegal abstraction of water from the Vaal by local farmers.

At the sixth World Water Forum, which took place in Marseilles from in March, Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa lead a delegation from South Africa that voiced grave concerns over the future of water management in her country.

While endorsing the significant contribution that South Africa has made to raising public awareness, the World Water Forum also recommends the implementation of ongoing legal and institutional reforms in the country, to ensure maximum accountability and sustainability are achieved in the long term.

India’s infrastructure requires “urgent” funding

Posted on by Ben Debski

India’s infrastructure funding has been in critical need of attention for years. As far back as 2007, Deutsche Bank Research identified the need based on increasing population and economic vitality. That same report, however, also identified enough political instability within the country to make potential investors nervous, slowing forward progress on private infrastructure investment.

Countries like the UK have developed a unified infrastructure plan that lays out not only an overall design plan, but funding proposals. Socialist countries like China depend on infrastructure projects as an economic driver, and so make those the focus for their future. The US has partnerships between the state and federal government if the project crosses state lines. If not, the state or local government facilitates the project.

India has traditionally provided less funding than needed for infrastructure projects. The most recent budget proposal (the 12th five-year plan) increases funding options for items like agricultural market terminals and oil and gas pipelines. It also authorises the funding of tax-free bonds to support some public sector undertakings. For example, a new irrigation and water resource finance company will be created to help with the funding of big-ticket investments such as flood control, irrigation and drought mitigation.

Still, many experts say the budget proposal doesn’t go far enough. The survey pointed out that “there is a need for introducing more innovative schemes to attract large-scale investment into infrastructure.” Changes such as allowing pension and insurance funds to invest in infrastructure debt have been proposed, but so far not acted on, even in the new budget. In almost all other free market economies, these investment options are open to pension plans and large investment schemes.

Additionally, outside investors will need assurance that the government will support their admittedly large investments and not pass future laws derailing their moves. Future budgets will also have to fund later portions of an overall investment, as no company is going to invest in the first 5,000km of a new motorway without knowing that the final section of the road will be built.

For India to continue its growth, a more unified plan will need to be put forth by the government so that both public and private sectors have reason to look to the future, and there will have to be assurances that the government will fund these projects forward to completion.