Bharat Forge eyes 25% revenue via non-auto lines

Bharat Forge is targetting to get 25 per cent of its consolidated revenues from non-automotive businesses (infrastructure, power, oil & gas and iron & steel) in a couple of years from the existing 17 per cent.

"These sectors, are expected to witness huge investments from the public as well as private sector," said Baba N Kalyani, chairman & managing director, Bharat Forge.

Bharat Forge, which owns 52 per cent of FAW Corporation of China, hopes to ramp up its Chinese operations in 2-3 years. The company also plans to scale up operations in the US.

The company has targeted a consolidated turnover of $1 billion by 2008. This will be achieved through organic, inorganic growth and focus on the emerging non-automotive sectors, said Kalyani.

Bharat Forge reported a consolidated sale of $678 million (Rs 3,085 crore) for the year ended March 31, 2006, up 54 per cent compared with $440 million (Rs 2,001 crore) in the previous comparable period.

The company will expand its domestic forging capacity by 1,20,000 tonne by October. The Rs 650 crore expansion will double the company's capacity to 2,40,000 tonne.

The expanded capacity will meet the growing demand from the domestic and export market. Bharat Forge has a total global forging capacity of 600,000 tonne, making it the second largest forging company after Thyssenkrupp.

Over 1,200 employees have been added to the company's existing workforce during the last one and half years, taking the total number to 3,800.