NEW DELHI, July 6 (UPI) — India has set up a petroleum and natural gas regulatory board to regulate downstream activities in the petroleum and natural gas sectors.

“With the issuance of notification by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the government has finally established a petroleum and natural gas regulatory board,” the ministry said in a news release.

Labayendu Mansingh has assumed position as the first chairperson of the board, and the inaugural members include LK Singhvi, Bhagwat Singh Negi and Sudha Mahalingam.

“As per the statute, the board will regulate the downstream activities in the petroleum and natural gas sectors, including refining, processing, storage, transportation, distribution, marketing and sale of petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas and ensure uninterrupted and adequate supply of petroleum and gas in the country,” the ministry said.

It said the move is aimed at promoting competitive markets. According to the ministry statement, the functions of the board will include registration of entities, market notified petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas and establishing and operating liquefied natural gas terminals.

The ministry has said the other functions of the board are to establish storage facilities beyond a certain capacity as may be specified by regulations, and authorize entities to lay, build, operate or expand a common carrier or contract carrier or city gas distribution network.

“The board shall ensure adequate availability and display of retail selling prices at the retail outlets, monitor prices and transportation rates for common carrier or contract carrier, and take corrective measures to prevent restrictive trade practices,” the state explained.

Private equity firms are on the hunt like never before. With increasing amounts of cash at their disposal, firms like http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=671980, http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=23307, and http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=23473 are chasing more deals and hunting ever-larger prey. So far this year, the value of companies acquired through buyouts has more than doubled to $487.2 billion.

Almost no company is beyond their reach. In February, Texas Pacific, http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=21401, and Goldman Sachs (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) cut a deal to acquire the Texas utility TXU (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) for $45 billion, in the largest buyout ever (see BusinessWeek.com, 2/26/07, http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/feb2007/db20070226_451428.htm).

Now, a growing number of public companies are taking action to stay beyond the grasp of the private equity firms. They’re spinning off assets, rethinking their portfolios, and overhauling their balance sheets to keep the buyout barons at bay.

There was a spate of such deals on June 24. Dominion (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) said it would sell its onshore oil-and-gas businesses to Loews (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) and XTO Energy (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) in two separate deals worth a total of $6.5 billion. General Electric’s (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) real estate arm said it would buy the Canadian operations of Dundee Real Estate Investment Trust. And Reuters (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) reported that American Express (http://www.businessweek.com/ticker/) had decided to sell its private banking unit. Private Pressure

The value of spin-offs has increased 14% so far this year, to $56.8 billion, according to the market research firm Dealogic. It’s clear evidence that private equity, coupled with powerful shareholder activists, are changing the way all companies do business. “Private equity guys are putting pressure on public companies to become more efficient and boost their share price,” says John Altorelli, a partner and mergers-and-acquisitions specialist at law firm http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=1623562. “If those companies don’t do it, somebody will do it for them.”

The private equity effect looks like it will only grow in the months ahead. With buyout firms raising larger war chests and pressing into new industries, more public companies will feel the heat. “It sure looks like it will pick up this summer,” says Robert Profusek, head of the M&A practice at law firm http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?capId=1657535. “The trend toward deconsolidation appears to be accelerating.”

Not so long ago, investors valued big companies with diverse asset portfolios. Such companies, epitomized by ьberconglomerate GE, were supposed to ride out the ups and downs of the economy. While one set of businesses was out of favor, another set of businesses would be in favor, ensuring a ready, reliable pace of growth. Now, even GE is selling off major chunks of its business, including its plastics operation in May for nearly $12 billion (see BusinessWeek.com, 5/21/07, http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/may2007/db20070521_719144.htm).

October 30, 2007 — Ali up

Alibaba.com raised $1.5 billion in the second-big gest Internet IPO after Google, sources said. In vestors sought more than 180 times the num ber of shares on offer, according to reports. Yahoo!, which has about a 40 percent stake in parent Alibaba.com Corp., was up 24 percent this month before yester day on optimism about the IPO, but closed yes terday down 5.5 percent, to $31.79, the biggest slump since April.

Loonie boom

Canada’s dollar touched the highest since 1960 on surging de mand for the nation’s commodity exports. It rose 1 percent to $1.0495 in Toronto, after touch ing $1.0509, the highest since March 28, 1960. One U.S. dollar buys 95.28 Canadian cents.

Martha gets

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia has hired its second former Yahoo! exec for online opera tions. Jacki Kelley was named executive vice president of media sales.

Bear settles

Bear Stearns will pay $1 million to Enron Corp. creditors to settle claims that Bear received pref erential treatment as Enron slid into bank ruptcy in 2001, papers filed Oct. 26 show.

Foreclosures

About a half-million U.S. mortgage borrowers each year for the next few years risk foreclo sure, a former chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Loews down

The Tisch family’s Loews Corp. said third- quarter profit fell 21 per cent as lower revenue, investment losses and a legal settlement hobbled its insurance unit. CNA Financial Corp., the Chi cago-based property and casualty insurer 89 per cent owned by Loews, said that revenue fell 3.1 percent to $1.89 billion.

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