MAM
Ogilvy & Mather snags the Grand EFFIE 2018
MUMBAI: The Advertising Club (TAC) India hosted the 18th edition of the coveted EFFIE awards 2018 in Mumbai last night. The event saw category game-changers and innovators for the year being celebrated for their ground breaking media and brand strategies.
The coveted Grand EFFIE was won by Ogilvy & Mather Group while client of the year was awarded to One97 Communication and McCann Worldgroup India became agency of the year.
President of TAC and chairperson EFFIEs Vikram Sakhuja says, “With the bar raised higher year on year, winning an EFFIE has become more competitive and rewarding. This year we are seeing a new Client of the Year and a new Agency of the Year. My congratulations to them and all the 93 winners.”
Speaking about the ethos of the awards he further adds, “The four pillars of effectiveness are strategy, idea, execution and results. To win an EFFIE we are finding that effectiveness in advertising is getting increasingly medium agnostic. Accordingly ideas are being brought to scale in a remarkable number of ways. The one area I would like to further challenge us all is in the description of results.”
EFFIEs co-chairperson Mitrajit Bhattacharya mentions, “The EFFIEs 2018 once again witnessed patronage from industry veterans and category leaders, establishing its eminence as a coveted industry award that recognises great ideas and superior execution. EFFIEs 2018 saw the entire fraternity come together to laud and celebrate successful campaign stories that are ahead of the curve on innovation and engagement.”
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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.
