AG&P BREAKS GROUND ON ITS LNG IMPORT FACILITY AT KARAIKAL PORT, PUDUCHERRY, EXPANDING ACCESS TO NATURAL GAS FOR DOWNSTREAM CUSTOMERS IN SOUTH INDIA

^{AG&P breaks ground on its LNG import facility at Karaikal Port, Puducherry. Terminal expected to commence operations by Q4 2021. (Graphic: Business Wire)}


CHENNAI, India, Feb 21 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- AG&P, the global downstream gas and LNG logistics company, has broken ground on its LNG Import Facility at Karaikal Port, Puducherry, paving the way to broader access to natural gas as a primary fuel in South India. The Karaikal LNG Import Facility (“Karaikal LNG”) is expected to commence commercial operations by Q4 2021.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200220005497/en/  

Owned and operated by AG&P, Karaikal LNG Import Facility is being built on a 12-hectare site within the Karaikal Port, which enjoys the only deep-water access on the East Coast of India south of Chennai, with all-weather capabilities and 24/7 operations. Karaikal LNG, which will have an initial capacity of one million tonnes per annum (MTPA), will include a Floating Storage Unit (FSU) leased through a long-term charter agreement with ADNOC Logistics and Services (ADNOC L&S) from 2021, providing an efficient solution that will enable the supply of this clean fuel to be affordable.

Strategically located 280km south of Chennai and in close proximity to Tamil Nadu’s thriving manufacturing clusters, the new terminal will provide natural gas to power plants, industrial and commercial customers within a 300 km radius. In addition, Karaikal LNG will serve the important city gas networks of AG&P and other city gas companies that bring CNG and LNG to vehicles and piped natural gas to households and other establishments. Truck loading bays will enable delivery of LNG to remote customers by AG&P’s own fleet of trucks.

JM Sigelman, CEO of AG&P, said, “AG&P is deeply honored to have the opportunity to bring Karaikal LNG to fast-growing and dynamic Southeast India. It will become a landmark infrastructure development for the region and is ideally suited for the Karaikal Port, a critical center of trade. AG&P takes on the value chain from import of LNG through to delivery of gas to end-customers – vehicles, kitchens, large and small factories, power, restaurants and malls. Karaikal LNG is a cornerstone project for Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka that will provide clean, affordable fuel.”

Karthik Sathyamoorthy, President of AG&P Terminals and Logistics, said, “With the addition of AG&P’s LNG import terminal, the Karaikal Port will become a gateway for the delivery of cleaner and lower-cost fuel to downstream demand centers that are unable to access natural gas today. Our goal is to bring down the unit cost of regasification terminals for smaller volumes to make LNG commercially viable for scattered and smaller customers. We will achieve this at Karaikal through the unique solution we are implementing with our partners such as ADNOC L&S.”

Abhilesh Gupta, AG&P’s CFO and Chief Commercial Officer, commented, “Karaikal LNG will play a crucial role in the GDP of Southeast India. Karaikal LNG is a vital infrastructure project that will provide a substantial boost to the region’s economy. It will help improve the socio-economic conditions of communities within a few hundred-kilometer radius through local employment and the development of industries via reliable and affordable access to natural gas and LNG.”

AG&P develops and builds LNG import terminals in nascent and growing markets around the world. These facilities encourage the development of a downstream gas value chain and unlock latent demand. At Karaikal LNG, AG&P has developed a flexible configuration combining floating storage and onshore facilities, such as truck-loading. This design increases operational efficiencies that result in a flexible and commercially-compelling solution for our customers.

Beyond Karaikal, AG&P is one of the largest international players in India’s gas sector, having been awarded exclusive rights from the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) to build city gas distribution (CGD) networks in 12 Geographic Areas across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka and Rajasthan. At the end of 8 years, the AG&P networks will offer more than 1,500 CNG stations and natural gas connections to millions of households.

About AG&P:

AG&P is a global leader in developing and running LNG and gas logistics and distribution solutions. AG&P provides the infrastructure to access natural gas safely and easily in new and growing markets. We act as an owner and as a service provider covering the engineering, procurement, project management and construction for onshore and offshore gas infrastructure, linking suppliers to downstream customers.

www.agpglobal.com

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Contact

MSL India
Bishnupriya Narayan - AVP, Strategy bishnupriya.narayan@mslgroup.com
Ph: + 91 9958574545

AG&P
Christine Jones – VP, Global Marketing & Communications christine.jones@agpglobal.com
Ph +61 409635 675

Source : AG&P

Kioxia launches line-up of PCIe® 4.0 solid state drives

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 21 -- Kioxia Corporation has unveiled its lineup of PCIe® 4.0 NVMe™ enterprise and data center solid state drives (SSDs) - CM6 Series Enterprise and CD6 Series Data Center.

According to a statement, Kioxia was the first company to publicly demonstrate PCIe® 4.0 SSDs and is now the first to commence shipment of these next-generation drives.

Dual-ported for high-availability, Kioxia’s CM6 Series of PCIe® 4.0 represents improvements of up to two times over its PCIe® 3.0 predecessors and are 12 times faster than typical SATA drives.

Designed for enterprise applications and use cases – including high-performance computing, artificial intelligence, caching layer, financial trading and data analytics – the CM6 Series are available in capacities of up to 30.72TB.

Meanwhile, CD6 Series of PCIe® 4.0 is single-ported for servers, and targeted to hyperscale data center and general-purpose applications such as database, cloud/container environments, web servers and media streaming.

The CD6 Series will be available in capacities of up to 15.36TB, with up to 6.2GB/s throughput and 1.0 M IOPS random access performance.

-- BERNAMA

MANULIFE INSURANCE BERHAD LAUNCHES NEW JOHOR BAHRU REGIONAL SUPPORT CENTRE

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 18 (Bernama) -- Manulife Insurance Berhad (MIB) has launched its new Johor Bahru Regional Support Centre (RSC) in Menara Landmark. It replaces the previous RSC located at Bangunan Ang, Johor Bahru.

This is one of the company’s latest efforts to further drive recruitment and attract the best and brightest insurance and financial services professionals in the southern section of Peninsular Malaysia. Currently, MIB has six RSCs nationwide, each located at our head office in Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur; Juru, Penang; Ipoh, Perak; Johor Bahru, Johor; and Sibu and Kuching in Sarawak.

“RSCs support our agency members in providing office space for them to grow their business and provide faster and smoother service to our customers. A win-win for all – we are progressing towards our bold ambition of becoming the most digital, customer-centric global company in our industry,” said Lee Sang Hui, Chief Executive Officer of MIB.

“MIB’s presence in the southern region is significant in terms of agency strength and customer base and is an important region for us when it comes to contributing to our business growth. MIB will continue to look for more ways to increase our brand presence in Johor Bahru to support the growth of business there,” he added.

An official signing ceremony was also held, to welcome Aspire Global Achievers Sdn Bhd (AGA) as one of the company’s very first Agency Leaders Corporation (ALC) in the southern region.

Strategically located in the heart of Johor Bahru city, the RSC in Menara Landmark is a spacious 11,000 square foot with a modern look and feel, complete with a customer service

About Manulife Malaysia
Manulife Holdings Berhad is part of Canada-based Manulife Financial Corporation. Through its subsidiary companies, Manulife Malaysia offers an innovative range of financial protection, health and wealth management products and services to meet different customer needs. Manulife Malaysia currently serves the needs of over 270,000 policyholders and wealth management customers. Manulife Holdings Berhad has been listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia since 1984. As at 31 December 2019, its assets under management were over RM11 billion. To learn more about Manulife Malaysia, visit: www.manulife.com.my.

About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group that helps people make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we operate as Manulife across our offices in Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. We provide financial advice, insurance, and wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2019, we had more than 35,000 employees, over 98,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving almost 30 million customers. As of December 31, 2019, we had $1.2 trillion (US$0.9 trillion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made $29.7 billion in payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 100 years. We trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong.

SOURCE:  Manulife Insurance Berhad

Renamed: Willis Lease announces US$366.2 million fixed rate notes offering

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 14 -- Willis Engine Securitisation Trust II, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Willis Lease Finance Corporation (Willis) will be renamed Willis Engine Structured Trust V (WEST).

According to a statement, this is on, or prior to, the issuance date of the Notes – proposes to offer US$366.2 million in aggregate principal amount of fixed-rate notes (the Notes). (US$1 = RM4.14)

It is expected that the Notes will be issued in three series in an aggregate principal amount of approximately US$303 million for Series A Notes; US$42.1 million (Series B Notes); and  US$21.1 million (Series C Notes).

The Notes will be secured by, among other things, WEST’s direct and indirect interests in a portfolio of 54 aircraft engines and three airframes, including 25 aircraft engines and three airframes which WEST will acquire from Willis pursuant to an asset purchase agreement.

The net proceeds of the Notes will be primarily applied to repay in full the aggregate principal amount of outstanding Class 2012-A Fixed Rate Term Notes issued by WEST and pay any accrued and unpaid interest thereon.

In addition, it will be used to pay fees and expenses related to the issuance of the Notes, and pay Willis periodically over a 270-day delivery period as consideration for the aircraft engines and the airframes acquired by WEST from Willis in connection with the financing.

The net proceeds will also be applied to make a distribution to Willis with some or all of the excess proceeds, to the extent any excess proceeds remain after giving effect to the foregoing. Willis will apply any net proceeds it receives for general corporate purposes.

-- BERNAMA

Oerlikon Metco among best places to work in Singapore

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12 -- Oerlikon Metco’s Singapore office, a global leading surface and materials solutions provider has been recognised as one of the best places to work in Singapore for 2019, according to the annual workplace research programme.

“We are incredibly proud to be recognised as a great place to work. This recognition is particularly meaningful because it is testament to our continual efforts in creating an inclusive environment that fosters respect for each person’s unique talents, ideas and contributions,” said Regional Head of Sales APAC for Oerlikon Metco Singapore, Rakesh Pawar.

Best Places to Work program is an international programme providing employers in different countries the opportunity to learn more about the engagement and satisfaction of their employees and honour those who deliver an outstanding work experience.

Companies making the list are recognised for their organisation’s culture, leadership and management, well-being, compensation and benefits along with exceptional human resources programmes and forward-thinking workplace policies.

Oerlikon Metco Singapore has introduced new and innovative tools to help employees grow their career, grow the company and feel empowered to contribute their very best every day, aiming to remove workplace barriers and cultivate diversity and inclusion culture.

“This recognition reflects the engagement and the leadership of the team members who drive the commitment to being one of the best places to work in Singapore,” said Program Manager for Singapore, Grace Kelly.

More details https://www.bestplacestoworkfor.org.

-- BERNAMA

AeroVironment seals US$8.5 million contract for US Central Command Ally

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 11 -- AeroVironment Inc, a global leader in unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) has received a US$8,584,734 firm-fixed-price United States (US) Department of Defense Foreign Military Sales contract. (US$1 = RM4.13)

Announced at the Singapore Airshow, the contract was awarded on Dec 17, 2019 to provide Puma™ 3 All Environment (AE) UAS, training and support to an allied nation. Delivery is anticipated by June.

According to AeroVironment vice-president (sales and business development), Rick Pedigo, customers in the US and worldwide deploy AeroVironment’s rugged family of tactical UAS including Puma, to provide forces the actionable intelligence needed to proceed with certainty in a broad range of operating environments.

The AeroVironment Puma 3 AE is a fully man-portable UAS designed for land and maritime operations. The hand-launched Puma 3 AE has a wingspan of 9.2 feet (2.8 metres) and weighs 15 pounds (6.8 kilograms), according to a statement.

Capable of landing in water or on land, the all-environment Puma, with its Mantis i45 sensor suite empowers the operator with extended flight time and a level of imaging capability never before available in the small UAS class.

More details at www.avinc.com.

-- BERNAMA

MOENGAGE RAISES $25 MILLION SERIES C INVESTMENT ROUND, LED BY EIGHT ROADS VENTURES

^{MoEngage Team (Photo: Business Wire)}


With participation from F-Prime Capital, Matrix Partners India and Ventureast

JAKARTA, Indonesia, Feb 12 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Having recently achieved Amazon Web Services (AWS) Retail Competency, MoEngage, an intelligent customer analytics and cross-channel engagement platform, has raised $25 Million in Series C funding. Eight Roads Ventures led the round with participation from its US-based sister fund, F-Prime Capital, along with Matrix Partners India and Ventureast. The new round of funding will be used to deepen relationships in Asia, integrate advanced capabilities into the product mix and scale operations in the USA and Europe, MoEngage’s two fastest-growing markets.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200211005891/en/

“The latest round of funding will help us reach more brands and empower them with the next-generation customer engagement platform built for the mobile-first world that is easier to use, fully integrated and intelligent,” said Raviteja Dodda, Founder & CEO, MoEngage Inc. “We also welcome the wealth of experience and expertise that Eight Roads Ventures and F-Prime Capital brings into the boardroom with this investment.”

MoEngage centralizes consumer behavioral analytics, insights and marketing automation into one dashboard where brands can engage with their customers across channels and personalize touchpoints.

“The rapid rise of mobile has increased the complexity of how digital-first and consumer-focused enterprises interact with customers. Marketers now need to seamlessly engage with customers in a personalized and real-time manner across different channels,” said Shweta Bhatia, Partner at Eight Roads Ventures. “What differentiates MoEngage from other engagement platforms is the combination of their ever-evolving AI-enabled customer journey capabilities, industry-best channel reachability and top-notch customer support. We are thrilled to partner with Raviteja and his team as they look to expand globally.”

“MoEngage has gained the trust of marquee enterprise customers globally and further strengthened their position as market leaders in the mobile-first customer engagement and analytics space. We’re privileged to have been early partners with Raviteja and the team and to have had a ringside view of their growth journey. We welcome Eight Roads and F-Prime to the partnership,” said Tarun Davda, Managing Director, Matrix India.

MoEngage's AI and automation platform map customer journeys and develops hyper-personalized offers, updates, recommendations and other communications across mobile, web, email and SMS - thus delivering an omnichannel experience. Hundreds of global brands across 35 countries use MoEngage to connect with 400+ million monthly active users, processing over 65+ billion interactions and 40+ billion messages every month.

MoEngage was featured in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Mobile Marketing Platform twice in a row and has received Highest Overall Customer Ratings (4.6/5) in 2019 Gartner Peer Insights ‘Voice of the Customer’ Report. The company counts several unicorns and enterprise brands as its customers, including the likes of Deutsche Telekom, CIMB Bank, Travelodge, Samsung, McAfee, Vodafone, Future Retail, Landmark Group, Mashreq Bank along with internet-first brands such as Ola, OYO, Bigbasket, and Tokopedia. Today, enterprise clients contribute nearly 50% of MoEngage’s total revenue.

"At Kredivo, our mission is to improve access to credit to underbanked millennials by providing fast, affordable and accessible credit directly on their mobile phone. MoEngage has been a valued partner in helping us analyze our customer behavior and improve retention and engagement through personalized experiences across various channels."

- Akshay Garg, CEO, FinAccel (powers Kredivo, Indonesia's leading instant credit platform)

About MoEngage

MoEngage is an intelligent customer engagement platform, built for the mobile-first world. With AI-powered automation, optimization capabilities, and in-built analytics, MoEngage enables hyper-personalization at scale across multiple channels like mobile push, email, in-app, web push, On-site messages, and SMS. Fortune 500 brands across 35+ countries such as Deutsche Telekom, Samsung, Vodafone and McAfee along with internet-first brands such as Ola, OYO, Bigbasket, and Tokopedia use MoEngage to orchestrate their cross-channel campaigns. To learn more about omnichannel user engagement with MoEngage, visit our website www.moengage.com

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Contact

MoEngage | Suraj Dubey | +91 9036324705 | suraj@moengage.com

Source : MoEngage