Good Morning Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the Thirty-first Annual General Meeting of your Company. The Report of the Directors and the audited results for the year ended March 31, 2007 have been with you for sometime and with your permission, I shall take them as read.

The spirit of entrepreneurship, mentorship and positive attitude of the Company today is symbolic of the emerging India. This spirit has seen your Company grow into a leading global shipping and maritime services provider, with an enviable list of Indian and international clientele.

Business Scenario
Shipping is an international business and closely related to world economic growth and global demand and supply trends. As a consequence, though the industry is subject to cyclical trends that bring an element of risk in operations, it is heartening to note that your Company has overcome this risk by providing integrated crude oil, petroleum products and dry bulk cargo transportation and transportation management services. This has enabled your Company to maintain a consistent track record of financial performance.

The crude oil transportation segment was impacted on account of mild winter and high crude stocks in the US, resulting in depressed freight rates for crude oil tankers. The freight rates have fallen to new lows, whereas the ship values are still firm.

On the dry bulk transportation segment, global steel demand is forecasted to grow by 5-6% in the coming year, with China's steel exports alone expected to increase by 10-15% and iron ore import expected to increase by 40-50 million tons. With a large number of coal fired power plants becoming operational in China, India and Europe, coal trade is also expected to increase. With all this, the dry bulk trade is expected to remain buoyant in the near future. The buoyancy in the dry bulk market is evident from the freight rates and vessel values which have reached alarming levels during the last six months.

Financial Performance
During the year under review, your Company achieved a total Income of Rs.1,044.62 Crores as compared to Rs. 760.29 Crores during the previous year, representing an increase of 37%. This has been achieved due to increase in tonnage on account of acquisition of two VLCC's and due to increased movement of cargo under the various Contract of Affreightments (COA's) entered into during the year.

The Net Profit for the year has reduced from Rs. 185.22 Crores during the previous year to Rs. 133.99 Crores in the current year. This is largely due the fact that the Net Profit for the previous year included Profit from sale of ships of Rs. 70.70 Crores as compared to Rs. 12.47 Crores during the year under review. The freight markets continued to be robust during the year under review.

The focus on providing value added logistics and supply chain management services and constant initiatives towards reduction of operating costs has enabled your Company to improve operating margins. During the year under review, the Operating Margin on Time Charter Equivalent (TCE) basis has increased from 48% during the previous year to 59%.
Dry docking expenses were Rs. 14.02 Crores during the year as against Rs. 30.20 Crores during the previous year. Direct Voyage Expenses were Rs. 505.70 Crores as compared to Rs. 310.85 Crores during the previous year, which is largely due to increased chartering of vessels for servicing the COA's.

The Debt Equity Ratio is 0.48 : 1 as on 31st March, 2007, as compared to 0.51 : 1 as on 31st March 2006.

Quality , Safety and Environment
Quality and safety of environment and life at sea are among the foremost priorities of your Company. Your Company has put in place quality standards and procedures that are best in the industry for which your Company has won several accreditations. Your Company has been awarded the "Safest Indian Shipping Company" and the "Most Quality Conscious Shipping Company in 2006" by the Government of India. Apart from the awards for safety your Company was also bestowed with the following awards:

a. Best Bulk Operator and Best Tanker Operator Award for Middle East / Indian Subcontinent Region: Awarded by "The Lloyd's List Middle East & Indian Subcontinent Awards, 2006".
b. Ship of the Year (Indian Flag in Foreign Trade) - Very Large Crude Carrier "M.T. Smiti": Awarded by "The Director General of Shipping, Government of India".

Acknowledgements
Before I end, I thank each one of you for your co-operation, the employees for their dedicated efforts, financial institutions and bankers for their support and the colleagues on my Board for their guidance.

Thanking you,

Chairman

Note:  This does not purport to be the proceedings of the Thirty-first Annual General Meeting held at Bangalore on September 25, 2007.