The Hindu Business Line : Disinvestment casualty — BBUNL loses export order worth Rs 300 cr

Thus, Bharat Bhari Udyog Nigam Ltd (BBUNL) has lost a prospective export order of 15,000 bogies from Russia because of the ongoing disinvestment programme being pursued by some of its group companies. "The order was valued at Rs 300 crore", sources said.

The main reason why the order had to be given up is because it involved a delivery schedule spread out over five years as well as some research and development regarding the design of the coaches. The BBUNL group of companies - - most of which are facing disinvestment - - is not in a position to undertake such a long-term commitment, the sources said.

This development comes at a time when the companies' exports have already taken a beating because of political developments in Ivory Coast. "This has affected BBUNL's wagon exports seriously since Ivory Coast is the port of entry for exports to West Africa - - the main market," the sources said.

Although BBUNL is continuing to export items like refractories to West Asian countries, it is wagon exports which really bring in the lucre.

BBUNL was set up in 1986 as a holding company with seven eastern region-based engineering companies and their two subsidaries in its fold. These included Burn Standard and Construction Ltd with units all over India, Jessop, Braithwaite, Bharat Wagon and Engineering Ltd (BWEL), Bharat Brakes and Valves Ltd, Bharat Process and Mechanical Engineers Ltd, Wagon India Ltd, Braithwaite Burn and Jessop Ltd, Reyrolle Burn Ltd and Lagan Jute Machinery Manufacturing Corporation. Barring BWEL, all the companies are based here.

However, since 2000 when BBUNL launched its disinvestment programme, it began divesting up to 74 per cent of its equity holding in the group companies beginning with Lagan.

At present, four of its companies are on the auction block while four more are under closure and awaiting the High Court's order for liquidation. All the four units facing disinvestment are wagon manufacturers, the sources said.

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