The Hindu Business Line : GE India bets on financial biz for $8-b revenue by 2010

`We have enough projects in the pipeline and are going to leverage the diversity of our businesses in India.' Sees India as one of the key players among emerging markets

MR SCOTT R. BAYMAN

New Delhi , Nov. 13

GE India said on Monday that it is targeting a more than four-fold jump in revenue to $8 billion by 2010, riding on the back of its growing financial business.

"Most of the growth would come from the financial business and it would play a very critical role in helping to achieve the $8 billion mark by 2010," the GE India President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr Scott R. Bayman, said.

Mr Bayman said the company anticipates its global revenues from emerging markets such as India and China to cross the $50 billion mark by 2010. GE India clocked a revenue of $1.2 billion last year and is expecting $1.7 billion this fiscal.

"By 2008, we are targeting $3-4 billion, which will then go up to $8 billion by 2010," he said, adding that the current asset valuation stood at $4 billion, which would be doubled by 2010.

He said that GE has identified India as one of the key players among emerging markets worldwide, which would drive its growth in the next few years.

"We have enough projects in the pipeline and are going to leverage the diversity of our businesses in India," he said. Mr Bayman added that GE's infrastructure business in the country would see an investment of $500 million in the current financial.

The company was generating revenue of $500 million from its infrastructure business in the country and was targeting to double its business by next year.

Many opportunities

He added that the company saw a tremendous opportunity in Railways and was in discussions for locomotives manufacturing.

"Customer service, signalling technology, diesel engines for freight corridors are the possible areas we are looking at," he said.

Speaking about GE's various businesses in the country, Mr Bayman said plastics was another growth area as a lot of telecom companies are setting up manufacturing bases here. "We are already talking to a lot of companies, including Nokia for providing material for handsets. We are looking to tap companies which are coming to India," he said.

In the power sector, Mr Bayman said the company was keen to participate in the civil nuclear space and rural electrification.

"We are very excited about the nuclear deal between the US and India, and have initiated dialogues with all the power players in the country," he said.

On its R&D facility in Bangalore, Mr Bayman said the centre was the largest outside US and would add a fifth building there.

GE India, he said, would further ramp up its headcount in the country by another 4,000 by 2010. At present, the count stands at 13,000 heads.

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