Hitachi, Japan-based engineering and electronics major, plans to invest 70 billion Yen or Rs 4,700 crore by the financial year 2015-16 in its Indian business. Through this investment, the group is aiming to set up manufacturing base in the country and export construction machinery and power electronics products to Africa, Middle East and South East Asia.
Junzo Nakajima, Hitachi’s Executive Vice President and CEO for Asia Pacific while sharing group’s expansion plans, also expressed interest towards entering the financial segment by setting up a financing company. “We do not wish to enter the banking segment but we do plan to set up a financing company in the public private partnership (PPP) mode in the future,” said Nakajima. Apart from financial segment, Hitachi is also expanding its Ahmedabad based Hitachi Hi-Reliance Power Electronic ltd and set up a new factory for power metallurgy and friction materials by Hitachi Chemical at Neemrana in Rajasthan.
After India, the group plans to consolidate its business in new markets and in pursuit of that has decided to keep India as a base. Commenting on that, Nakajima said, “We plan to expand our business in Africa, Middle East and South East Asia for which we have decided to keep India as a base for manufacturing of construction machinery and power electronics products.” Hitachi currently has 10 research and development (R&D) centers across the world but the company plans to set up a R&D facility in the country as well. “We would have new R&D centre in Bangalore for construction machinery,” Nakajima added.
Other expansion include setting up of country’s first solar power generation unit in Neemrana and an automotive device manufacturing facility in Chennai which is currently in the construction phase. Moreover, Hitachi India’s Managing Director Ichiro Iino said the company would in January 2014 bid for the railway signalling systems of the Delhi-Mumbai section of the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) project. As far as Hitachi India’s performance in the current fiscal goes, Iino said, “We expect the Hitachi India’s revenue for financial year 2013 to grow in double digits.”