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Kolkata, July 11

EXIDE Technologies, US, has shown interest in sourcing batteries from Exide Industries Ltd for distribution in the Chinese market, according to Mr S.B. Ganguly, Executive Chairman & CEO of Exide Industries Ltd.

Talking to newspersons at the end of the company's annual general meeting here on Friday, Mr Ganguly indicated that a meeting with the Chairman of the US company, Mr Musllunar, was on the anvil. The meeting could be held either in India or in the US.

In China, the American company earlier had a manufacturing base, which had since been closed. However, a distribution outfit was still there. The American company was finding it hard to source the products from Europe for distribution in the Chinese market, he said.

The traction batteries manufactured by Exide Industries, he said, had proved to be a big hit in the UK, Europe and other parts of the world, so much so that a joint venture marketing company had been floated in the UK for distribution in that country. Exide Industries held the majority stake (51 per cent) in the joint venture company, Espex, with the balance 49 per cent being held by Spex, the joint venture partner.

"In 1916, we started as a import house in India for distribution of batteries manufactured in the UK and now we are selling Indian batteries in that country," he said.

In the Netherlands, marketing arrangements had been firmed up with IBG to push the traction batteries under the brand name of Centrex. Exide Industries was also selling large volumes of traction batteries in Australia through two firms in that country, namely, Citric and CMP, and in Singapore for the Japanese market. "The overseas demand for our batteries is very high but we cannot meet it because of the pressing domestic demand," he said, conceding that the unit value realisation of the company's products in the domestic market was much higher than that in the export market.

In the current year, the company's exports, according to him, would amount to Rs 50 crore as compared to Rs 43 crore in 2002-03. "For the first time, we are trying to secure export order for submarine batteries and accordingly negotiating with countries such as Peru, Algeria and Indonesia," he said. In 2002-03, the company supplied submarine batteries worth about Rs 32 crore to the Indian Navy.

Exide Industries, which spent nearly Rs 350 crore on modernisation in past four years, proposed to spend another Rs 50 crore in the current year. "We are putting up an expanded grid plate technology in our Chinchwad plant to augment our capacity substantially," he said.

Exide has started marketing battery-powered electric boats. "It has proved to be a big hit and as many as 16 such boats have already been sold to State Governments of Kerala, Orissa and West Bengal and negotiations are on with a few more States," he said. The company was also in the process of launching a new battery for CNG-powered three-wheelers, he added.

Earlier, the shareholders complimented the management for declaring bonus issue in the ratio of 1:1. The last bonus issue was declared in 1987.

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