The government on Monday cleared 18 foreign direct investment proposals involving Rs 118.93 crore (Rs 1,189.3 million) including Standard Chartered Private Equity's plan to pick up 14.35 per cent stake in NDTV for Rs 52.88 crore (Rs 528.8 million).
The FDI proposals, approved by Finance Minister Jaswant Singh following the recommendation from Foreign Investment Promotion Board, also include Shell International's plan to set up a wholly-owned subsidiary in India for Rs 14 crore (Rs 140 million).
Most of the FDI proposals pertain to chemicals, power, petrochem, IT and broadcasting, an official release said in New Delhi.
NDTV plans to offer 14.35 per cent stake to the Mauritius-based Standard Chartered Private Equity for Rs 52.88 crore. The company operates in the area of production and broadcast of news, current affairs, entertainment and distribution of news content.
Shell plans to set up a 100 per cent subsidiary in India for production of bitumin and related products. The United Kingdom-based energy giant would invest Rs 14 crore for the new company.
GMR Group plans to set up a 200 MW power plant with foreign funding worth Rs 35 crore (Rs 350 million).