Hindubusinessline dt.10/11/10
DuPont is eyeing a turnover of over $1 billion from its India operations by 2012.
“Emerging markets accounted for 31 per cent of our $26.1 billion sales in 2009. We see this share rising, in which India will certainly have a part to play”, Ms Ellen Kullman, Chair and CEO of the Wilmington (Delaware)-headquartered US multinational, told select media persons here on Tuesday.
DuPont India expects do business of $700 million in the current calendar year, about 32 per cent of which would come from its crop protection chemicals (such as ‘Coragen' and ‘Avaunt' insecticides) and seeds (Pioneer Hi-Bred) operations. Another 25 per cent would be accounted for by automotives (paints, engineering polymers, ‘Kevlar' brake linings, etc), with construction (20 per cent) and others (23 per cent) making up the balance.
“Our sales growth averaged 21 per cent during 2003-08, which we anticipate at 26 per cent during 2009-12. India is currently our tenth largest geography and we aspire to take this up to No. 5”, said Mr Balvinder S Kalsi, President (South Asia), DuPont.
Ms Kullman was particularly bullish on the company's agriculture business.
“Out of the $1.4 billion that we invested in R&D in 2009, 50 per cent was dedicated for increased food production. We are working on developing traits for drought tolerance and improved nitrogen use efficiency in crops such as rice and corn that has relevance for India”, she noted.
DuPont India has three production facilities at Savli (near Vadodara, for crop protection products, performance polymers and refinish paints), Medchal (near Hyderabad, for ‘Pioneer' seeds) and Madurai (for filaments and ‘Teflon' non-stick coatings). Besides, there is a DuPont Knowledge Centre at Hyderabad, which is one of its seven global R&D centres outside the US.
“We have invested over Rs 150 crore in this facility, which has 360-plus people from material sciences, biology, chemistry and engineering backgrounds working under one roof. The Centre has generated nine patent applications in less than two years' time,” said the Centre's Director, Dr Homi Bhedwar.
Ms Kullman was evasive on the company's future manufacturing plans in India, including the prospects of producing titanium di-oxide (which it now imports for various paints and coating applications). “We are the world's largest titanium di-oxide producer. Our last plant came up in Taiwan in 1994 and we may need one more for the next decade,” she added.
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