MAM
Ad Club adds new categories for Creative Abbys 2016; calls for entries
MUMBAI: The Goa Fest Creative Abbys by the Advertising Club, which recognise the best in advertising and marketing, has added two new categories namely Special Abby (Gender Sensitive) and Young Abby.
Additionally, in the Print Craft, Computer Generated Imagery as a sub-category will be introduced, whereas in the Design vertical, new sub-categories of Typography Design and Best Integrated Design with two or more sub-categories will be introduced.
The Advertising Club has called for entries for the Creative Abbys 2016 and the last date for entries is 23 February, 2016. Campaigns released between 1 January, 2015 to 15 February, 2016 will be adjudged by a jury. The entry forms for the awards can be downloaded on the Ad Club website starting 9 February.
Awards Governing Council chairman Ramesh Narayan said, “This year’s Abby Awards will have three very significant improvements. Firstly to make the awards more in line with global practices, entries for almost all categories can be uploaded online. Secondly, to reinforce the idea that ‘what’s good, is good for the industry,’ there will be a special category for Gender Sensitive Advertising. Thirdly, to bring youth and the future onto centre-stage there will be a special Abby for entries received from copy and art teams under the age of 35 on the theme of how communication can help mitigate gender violence.”
“These are all issues, which came up in our interaction with the creative fraternity and the media, and I am pleased to say we are responding with alacrity to industry and societal needs. The young winners of this new category would not only get an Abby but also be sent for the Cannes Lions festival this June, all expenses paid. This would give them a great exposure to international professionals and work,” he added.
Goa Fest chairman Nakul Chopra said, “I welcome these new developments. They are a part of our ongoing effort to keep evolving and improving. The online uploading of entries will pose a technological and financial challenge but we have decided that it is important enough to implement immediately.”
Seconding Chopra’s point, Advertising Club president and Colors CEO Raj Nayak added, “To remain the gold standard of awards in India, we decided that technology, sensitive thinking and the future all needs to be addressed. I had said earlier that we could expect a lot this year, and it is beginning to show. The pre-eminent awards show in the country should show the way in every area.”
“I am very happy that what was publicly requested on an AAAI platform (an award for gender sensitive advertising) just last year, is becoming a reality. We need to be in sync with what is being sought for. The award for young creatives is the industry’s way of nurturing young talent,” added AAAI president Dr. Ambi Parameswaran.
The awards need to be uploaded online on the site on the site www.abbyawardsentries.com.
Brands
Trump announces $300bn Texas oil refinery with Reliance, calls it the biggest in US history
First new US refinery in 50 years planned at Brownsville port with Reliance
WASHINGTON: The United States may soon see the first brand-new oil refinery built on its soil in half a century.
Donald Trump announced a proposed $300 billion refinery project in Texas, calling it a landmark moment for American energy production and jobs.
Posting on Truth Social on 10 March, Trump said the facility would be built at the Port of Brownsville and developed by a company called America First Refining, with major investment from India’s Reliance Industries.
The announcement frames the project as a centrepiece of the administration’s push for “energy dominance”, with Trump claiming it would deliver thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic activity to South Texas.
If realised, the plant would mark the first all-new major refinery constructed in the United States since the 1970s. In recent decades, oil companies have largely chosen to expand existing facilities rather than build new ones, citing high costs, regulatory hurdles and environmental scrutiny.
Trump described the proposed investment as the “biggest in US history”, positioning it as proof that policy changes such as streamlined permits and lower taxes are drawing large-scale energy investments back into the country.
The refinery is planned for the Port of Brownsville, a strategic Gulf Coast location that provides easy access to shipping routes and export markets.
A key partner in the project is Reliance Industries, controlled by billionaire industrialist Mukesh Ambani. The company already runs the world’s largest refining complex in Jamnagar, India, making it one of the most experienced operators in large-scale petroleum processing.
The Texas venture would mark a significant step for the group into America’s domestic refining sector, potentially strengthening industrial ties between the US and India.
The proposed refinery is being promoted as a next-generation facility capable of processing American shale oil while maintaining high environmental standards. Trump said it would be “the cleanest refinery in the world”, although the specific technologies behind that claim have not yet been detailed.
Industry observers also note that the $300 billion figure is unusually large for a refinery project, and analysts are waiting for more clarity on whether the number reflects total construction costs, long-term infrastructure investment, or broader economic impact estimates.
As of 11 March, Reliance Industries had not publicly confirmed the investment size or the structure of its involvement.
For now, the announcement has sparked equal parts excitement and curiosity in energy markets. If the plan moves from promise to pouring concrete, the refinery could reshape the Gulf Coast energy landscape, and reopen a chapter in American refining that has been quiet for nearly fifty years.
