WHAT IS JATROPHA AND ITS CULTIVATION IN INDIA

Jatropha curcas belongs to the family. Euphorbiaceae and is thus related to other important
cultivated plants like rubber, varan, neem etc. It is believed to be a native of South America, Africa & the Caribbean. It was introduced by Portuguese traders in the 16th century in India and since then Jatropha has been grown as a medicinal plant & hedge crop.

There are number of varities of Jatropha now thrive in India's varied regional climate. It is found in almost all the states & is generally grown as a live fence for protection of agricultural fields from damage by live stock as it is not eaten by cattle or goat.Amongst all the variety,

JATROPHA curcas is the best since the seed oil is reported to possess insecticidal, mollucicidal, fungicidal & nimaticidal properties. Some of the jatropha varieties are as under:
» Jatropha curcas (Non-toxic) -suitable species for Jatropha oil and biodiesel production.

» Jatropha curcas integrerrima.

» Jatropha Gossypifolia.

» Jatropha Glandulifera.

» Jatropha Tranjorensis.

» Jatropha Multifield.

» Jatropha Podagrica.


JATROPHA CULTIVATION

Jatropha requires specialized nursery techniques to raise the saplings in the nursery. The first step in Jatropha plantation is to plant the seeds to raise the nursery, which is very vital and requires guidance of professionals. Jatropha can also be propagated vegetative from cuttings.

Seeds are best sown during mid-February to mid-march and the seedlings 60-75 cm.tall can be transplanted to the prepared field.

Ideal planting pitch has been found to be 2m x 2m. thereby resulting in 2500 plants per hectare. Wider spacing would give larger yields of fruit @794 Kgs./Hac. Like all perennial plants, Jatropha shows vigorous growth in youth that tails off gradually towards maturity.

1Kg. of good Jatropha seed will give around 1100 seeds.

Germination time under good nursery care is 10-21 days.

In equatorial regions where moisture is not a limiting factor, Jatropha can bloom & produce fruit throughout the year.

Although Jatropha is adapted to soils with low fertility & alkalinity, better yield can be obtained on poor quality soils if fertilizers containing small quantity of nutrients are for first 2 years which is considered to be vital for their growth.

Jatropha starts yielding seeds from the end of first year & the economic yield stabilizes from the end of 3rd year onwards.

Under Indian condition, the yield varies from 6-10 MT Near from the end of 3nl year under proper care & supervision.

The plantation cost per hectare inclusive of site preparation, plant, material, maintenance for one year, overheads etc. shall be in the tune of Rs.30000/Hectare

Ripe fruits are plucked from the tree and the seeds are sun dried. Ripe fruits are decorticated manually or by decorticator.

To prepare seeds for oil extraction, the seed should be solar heated for several hours or roasted for 10 minutes. Overheating is to be avoided.

Oil can be extracted from seeds by mechanical extraction, solvent extraction etc.
For a yearly plantation of 200 Hectares,we propose to raise a nursery of 20 Lakh seedlings to be developed initially and then to raise 10 lakh nursery every year. This figure can be pegged up and down in discussion with you.
The income from the plantation at the end of 3rd year is around Rs.60,000/- per Hectare.

BIODIESEL IN INDIA SCENARIO

There has been greater awareness on Biodiesel in india in the recent
times due to shortage of Petrodiesel and soaring prices. Significant
activities have picked up for its production especially with a view to
reduce the huge cost involved in import of Petroleum fuel and to take
care of the shortage of Petrodiesel anticipated within a few years from
now. In addition, the process of production of Biodiesel from non edible
vegetable oil will boost the rural economy and providing non-polluting,
bio degradable and safe environment.

Considering all the aspects available among non-edible Tree Bearing Oil
(TBO) seeds, Jatropha curcas has been identified as the most suitable
seed for extraction of oil and subsequent processing of Biodiesel. The
best source of producing Biodiesel is Jatropha curcas, a plant that
grows well mainly in tropical climate. Jatropha can be grown in arid
zones (20 cm rainfall) as well as higher rainfall zones and even on land
with thin soil cover.

In tropical countries like ours, Jatropha grows well and can bloom and
produce fruit through out the year. To withstand extreme drought
conditions, Jatropha plant sheds leaves to conserve moisture which may
result in reduced growth. Although, Jatropha is adapted to soils with
low fertility and alkalinity, better yields can be obtained on poor
quality soils, if fertilizers containing small amount of nutrients are
used for the first two years.

Therefore, Europe and other non-tropical countries are a buyer of
Jatropha seeds and seedling of Jatropha from our internal market. As of
now no countries can supply any Jatropha seeds for the commercial
production of Biodiesel, but seeds for cultivation purpose are available
since mass scale cultivation is going on in the Indian sub-continent.
Nursery propagation of Jatropha needs specialized agro techniques to get
plants to yield requisite oil yields and the plant needs specialized
attention (prunning) to make it adequately seed bearing just like tea
plant. The raising of nursery and plantation thereafter should be done
under professional guidance. Jatropha plant bears fruits from 2nd year
of its plantation & the economic yield stabilizes from 4th/5th year
onwards. The plant has an average life with effective yield up to 50
years. Jatropha gives around 2 kg.of seeds/Plant The economic yield can
be considered as one-two kg./Plant & 4-6 MT hect/ year depending on
agro-climatic zone & agricultural practices. One hectare of plantation
on average soil will give 1.6 MT of oil.

India produces only 22% of its diesel requirement & 78% is imported at a
huge cost in foreign currency. With the introduction of compulsory use
of 10-20% Biodiesel in UK, USA, France, Germany, Japan & other countries
who specifies a 40-50% mix by 2010. India has a huge requirement by 2010
to meet the world norms & emission standard & accordingly a National
policy has already been given a green signal by Govt.of India in the
year 2003. Indian Railways have already carried out a trial run on
Amritsar-Shatabdi Express with Biodiesel. Similarly, Haryana State
Transport buses have been run by using biodiesel. Indian Railways have
taken a decision to plant Jatropha trees by the side of railway tracks &
Indian Oil other agencies in possession of Biodiesel Processing Units
will eventually process the Jatropha oil into biodiesel for Indian
Railways & to meet the national needs..

JATROPHA PLANTATION INDIA

Non-Forest Areas proposed for Jatropha Curcas Plantation
200 districts in 19 potential_tates have been identified on the basis of
availability of wasteland, rural poverty ratio, below poverty line (BPL)
census and agro-climatic conditions suitable for jatropha cultivation.
Each district will be treated as a block and under each block 15,000
hecter jatropha plantittfon will be undertaken through farmers. Proposal
is to provide green coverage to about 3 Million hectares of wasteland
through plantation of jatropha in 200 identified districts over a period
of 3 years.
Andhra Pradesh Adilabad, Anantapur, Chittoor, Cuddapah, Kuroool, Karim
Nagar, Mehboob Nagar, Nellore, Nalgonda, Prakasam, Visakhapatnam, Warrangal.

Bihar Araria, Aurangabad, Banka, Betiah (West Champaran), Bhagalpur,
Gaya, Jahanabad, Jamui,-Kaimur, Latehar, Muzzaffarpur, Munger, Nawada.

Chhattisgarh Bastar, Bilaspur, Dantewada,"Dhamtri, Durg, Jagdalpur,
Janjgir-champa, Kanker, Kawardha, korba, Mahasaund, Rajnandgaon, Raipur,
Raigarh, Surguj.

Jharkhand Bokaro, Chatra, Daltenganj, Devgarh, Dhanbad, Dumka, Garhwa,
Godda, Giridih, Gumla, Hazaribag, Jamshedpur, Koderma, Pakur, Palamu,
Ranchi, Sahibganj, Singbhum(East), Singbhum(West).

Gujarat Ahmedabad, Amedi, Banaskantha, Bhavnagar, Junagarh, Jamnagar,
Kutch, Rajkot, Surendranagar, Sural.
Goa Panaji, Padi, Ponda, Sanguelim.

Himachal Pradesh Bilaspur, Nahan, Parvanu, Solan, Unna.

Haryana Ambala, Bhiwani, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Hisar, Jind, Jhajjar,
Mohindergarh, Punchkula, Rewari, Rohtak.

Karnataka Bijapur, Bellary, Bangalore, Belgaum, Chikmagalur,
Chitradurga, Daksina Kannada, Dharwad, Gulbarga, Hassan, Kolar, Mysore,
Raichur, TumkW, Udupi.

Kerala Kottayam, Quilon Trichur, Thiruvananthapuram.

Madhya Pradesh Betul, Chhindwara, Guna, Hoshingabad, Jabalpur, Khandwa ,
Mand Saur, Mandla, Nimar (Khargaon), Ratlam, Raisena, Rewa, Shahdol,
Shajapur, Shivpuri, Sagar, Satna, Shahdol, Tikamgarh, Ujjain, Vidisha.

Maharashtra Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Amrawati, Akola, Beed, Buldana,
Dhule, Nasik, Osmanabad, Parbhani, Pune, Ratnagiri, Raigad, Thane, Yavatmal.

Orissa Bolangir, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Ganiam, Gajapati, Jajapur, Koraput,
Keonjhar, Kalahandi, Nowrangpur, Nawapra, Phulbani, Puri.

Punjab Ferozpur, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Patiala, Sangrur.

Rajasthan Ajmer, Alwar, Barmar, Bilwara, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur,
Kota, Sikar, Sawai Madhopur, Udaipur.

Tamil Nadu Coimbatore, Chennai, Dharmapuri, Erode, Madurai, Peri gar,
Salem, Tirunelvelli, Vellore.

Uttar Pradesh Allahabad, Agra, Balia, Bulandshare, Bhadohi, Baharaich,
Chhitrakut, Deoria, Ferozabad, Faizabad, Ghazipur, Hardoi, Jaunpur,
Shahjahanpur.

Uttaranchal Chamoli, Dehradun, Pithoragarh, Rishikesh, Udhamsingh Nagar,
Uttrakashi.

West Bengal Balurghat, Barasat, Burdwan, Cochbehar, Darjeeling, Hoogly,
Howrah, Jalpaigudi, Mednapur, Murshidabad, MaIda, West Dinajpur,
24-Parganas South.

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Sector wise Stocks which make you crorepati in future! Believe it ! Hold for &7 Years

A. Commodities

• Reliance Industries – Perennially evergreen company

• Reliance Petroleum – Largest refinery with very high Nelson complexity index  that will lead to highest gross refining margins, GRMs

• NRE Coke – integration from coking coal to coke

• Tata Steel – formerly Tisco; lowest cost producer of steel plus large value addition through Corus acquisition

• Hindalco – lowest cost producer of aluminium plus large value addition through Novelis Fusion Technology

• Sterlite Industries – commodity powerhouse at a time when globally commodities are in a super cycle

• Sesa Goa – largest reserves of iron ore in private sector

 

B. Telecom

• RCom – marketing aggressiveness plus financial engineering plus political acumen

 

C. Auto

• Tata Motors – from world's cheapest car to luxury Jaguar to SUV Landrover to trucks -- will be in global top five in 5 years

 

D. Finance

• ICICI Bank – proactive, aggressive fund raising and lending taking full advantage of slow decision making at PSU banks

• Reliance Capital – straddling all areas of non-banking financial services
• Sbi: Going to became Public sector largest bank
  

 

E. Infrastructure

• L&T – another evergreen company, value unlocking through listing of subsidiaries, very strong core business

• Patel Engineering –  strong position in high margin high technology construction sector, real estate development
• Punj lloyd: A Very large corpus of order in pipeline &likely to become next L&T

  
  

F. Pharma

• Glenmark – innovator, out-licensor of drugs in fast growing therapeutic areas like lifestyle diseases

• Cipla – innovator copier, low cost supplier of essential medicines people can't do without

 

G. Realty

• DLF – proxy for the Indian real estate sector

• Unitech – number 2 and tries harder than number 1

• Sobha Developers – fully integrated real estate contractor who graduated to property developer status

Lanco Infra achieved financial closure for two road projects.

Lanco Infratech shares are trading at Rs.459. Lanco Infratech Ltd has
announced that the financial closures for the two road projects awarded
by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to LANCO at Karnataka to
be developed on Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis have been
successfully achieved.

The debt requirement for these projects has been tied up with State Bank
of India and its Associate Banks with State Bank of India being at the
lead. The two road projects are the 81 Km Bangalore-Hoskote-Mudbagal
stretch on National Highway 4 and 82 Km Neelamangla — Devihalli stretch
on National Highway 48. The project involves six laning of 16 Km stretch
and four laning of the remaining stretches. The total project cost is
estimated at Rs 13,480 million.

The concession periods are 20 and 25 years for the two projects
respectively including 30 months of construction period. The contracts
were awarded through a competitive bidding process. The projects would
be financed through a mix of Equity, Debt and Grant from NHAI.At
present, the power portfolio includes an operating capacity of 519 MW
and additional capacities under construction aggregating to more than
3,400 MW with plans under advanced stages of finalization for beginning
of construction of another 3600 MW. The construction and EPC wing has an
order book worth Rs 114 billion.

Bloglines - Stock Idea - Aban Offshore

Bloglines user raman_bel@yahoo.com has sent this item to you, with the following personal message:

Buy

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Stock Recommendations for Indian Share Markets

Stock Idea - Aban Offshore By Gemini Recommendation: Buy (again!!!) CMP = Rs 3,780 Price target: Rs 5,420 Key points: Aban Offshore has received a letter of intent from Oil and Natural Gas Corporation for the deployment of drillship, Aban Ice, on a three-year contract worth Rs 657 crore. As per the new contract, the day rate works out to around $154,000, which is much higher than our estimate of $110,000 per day. The ongoing contract, which was at a rate of $43,000 per day, is set to expire in March 2008. As can be noticed, the new rates are almost 258% higher than the previous contract, clearly indicating the strong uptrend in the day rates.  Also, it is important to note that the contract has been struck in rupee terms, protecting the company against any fluctuations on the foreign exchange front. I would also factor in the impact of this contract at higher day rates for Aban Ice in our next update, along with the impact of the recent acquisition of an offshore rig, Bulford, for a consideration of $211 million. All this would add to the company's growth from the next year onwards. Furthermore, the company might also announce its contract for the newly-built jack-up rig, Aban VIII, in February 2008, which may provide further upside to our numbers. It should be noted that the current correction in its stock price should be used as an opportunity to buy the stock. At the current market price of Rs 3,780, the stock is discounting its FY2009E earnings by 9.7x and FY2010E earnings by 7.5x. I believe that its valuations are extremely attractive at the current levels. Also, the listing of its subsidiary would act as an important trigger for the stock going ahead. I maintain Buy recommendation on the stock with a price target of Rs 5,420 with a time frame of 9-12 months.