Asian Electronics bets on energy efficient lighting

The Rs 180 crore Asian Electronics Ltd has bagged orders from six municipal corporations in the country, in addition to replacing the lighting in the Prime Minister's Office and the Shram Shakti Bhavan.

The work will entail replacing sodium vapor lamps with specially designed fluroscent lights.

Asian Electronics CMD Suresh Shah told Business Standard that the company has been working on the new concept of Energy Services Companies (ESCO) that work under the Bureau of Energy Efficiency set up by the central government.

"We are currently working with municipal corporations across the country including Amritsar in Punjab, Indore and Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh and Pune and Latur in Maharashtra," said Shah, adding, the project involves replacing the existing street lights with the company's lights.

The company replaces the existing lights and manages the new system including the maintenance to offer up to 60 per cent reduction in power consumption, he said.

Shah informed the contracts entered into with these municipalities are based on a sharing of the savings achieved by the company's lighting systems. "The agreements provide for passing on to us 80 per cent of the savings achieved by a civic body," Shah explained.

He said proper measuring of the savings using well known technical parameters is done and the money comes to the company through an escrow account with banks.

Shah said the next to go for the changeover are Bhivandi, Sholapur and Kolhapur in Maharashtra and a few cities in Tamil Nadu. The company is in negotiation with a Malaysian contractor to supply lighting for a 300 km highway stretch in that country, he added.

While the contribution from this business to the company's kitty was just about Rs 6 crore last year, the proportion will go up considerably this year and the ESCO business will contribute as high as Rs 60 crore out of the current year's (2006-07) projected turnover of Rs 360 crore, Shah informed.

The company expects the business to grow to Rs 100 crore in 2007-08 he said.