Enron laying broadband network in Maharashtra

Enron Corp's Indian unit is laying a fibre optic broadband communications network within Maharashtra and hopes to expand it to other states in future, a company spokesman said on Tuesday.

Powertel -- a joint venture of Enron India, Global Telesystems and Maharashtra State Electricity Board -- will lay the optic fibre network along MSEB's power transmission towers.

"We plan to start laying the cables next month," the spokesman said.

He said Enron India is also setting up data storage centres for Internet service providers in select cities through a subsidiary -- Broadband Solutions Private Limited.

Enron Chairman and CEO Ken Lay recently said in Houston the company was eyeing data storage as a new business opportunity.

The spokesman said the data centre in Bombay would be started in December. Other centres would be in Bangalore, Madras, Delhi, Pune and Hyderabad.

Enron India also plans to lay about 1,700 km of gas pipeline in three stages from Dabhol in Maharashtra to Gujarat, Karnataka and Kerala.

The spokesman said 370 km of pipeline would be laid between Dabhol to Panvel near Bombay in the first phase. Work on the pipeline, scheduled for completion by end 2002, will start next year.

In the second phase, Enron plans to extend the pipeline to Gujarat from Panvel and in the third phase to lay a pipeline from Dabhol to Karnataka and Kerala.

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