LG Electronics India, the subsidiary of South Korean consumer electronics major LG Electronics, plans to invest nearly Rs 500 crore over the next three years, said managing director Kwang-Ro Kim.
According to Kim, the investment will be made to upgrade manufacturing facilities in the country. "The huge future investment shows that LG is committed to the Indian markets," he said. LG has already invested Rs 500 crore since its entry five years back.
"The Rs 500 crore plan is directed towards producing more products in India, increasing the local content, introducing new products, research & development and expanding the distribution network," Kim said.
The company sells a range of colour televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, microwave ovens and air-conditioners, besides computer monitors and other peripherals in the country. It has also achieved an average localisation level of 70 per cent.
"In products such as CTVs, the localisation level is as high as 90 per cent," Kim said. He also unveiled 10 new CTV models, six frost-free refrigerator models, three microwave models and one AC model in the city. According to Kim, LG is the leader in the frost-free refrigerator segment with a market share of 17 per cent.
Last year, LG set up a new, frost-free refrigerator production line at its Greater Noida plant with an investment of Rs 100 crore. The facility will initially manufacture two models of frost-free refrigerators (280 litre and 310 litre) with two or three design variants each. A 230-litre and 250-litre models will be added shortly.
Next year LG will invest another Rs 100 crore for setting up a compressor manufacturing facility. Further investment will be made for producing fully-automatic washing machines in India. At present, they are imported from Korea.
In India, the company manufactures only semi-automatic models. LG has also invested Rs 50 crore in setting up a colour PC monitor facility.
The company is also opening more branch offices in important cities. It has opened new offices in Nagpur, Raipur, Ranchi and Goa, taking the number of LG branch offices to 22. The distribution network will be backed up by a chain of service centres. At present, LG has 120 service centres all over the country, Kim said.
Commenting on the Nagpur branch office, which will cover the entire Vidarbha region, Kim said the company was doing well in the region. It had a turnover of Rs 30 crore in the last financial year and is expected to grow to a Rs 50 crore branch in the current fiscal.
In Maharashtra, excluding Mumbai, LG achieved a turnover of Rs 100 crore last fiscal and is projecting an increase of Rs 30 crore in the current fiscal. In Mumbai, its turnover touched Rs 120 crore last year.
LG is confident of achieving a 25 per cent growth in its all-India sales in the current fiscal, Kim said. Its turnover last fiscal was Rs 1,900 crore, while the target this year is Rs 2,500 crore. The turnover in the first half of the current year crossed Rs 1,120 crore compared with Rs 966 crore in the corresponding period last year.
LG Electronics also exports to countries such as Sri Lanka, Dubai, The Netherlands, Singapore, Philippines and Maldives. The target for exports this year has been pegged at Rs 50 crore.
