Timken plans $25 mn plant in Chennai

US-based The Timken Company plans to build a new bearing manufacturing facility in the country. The plant, to be located in Chennai's Mahindra World City special economic zone, will produce a range of anti-friction bearings for the global markets.

The plant is estimated to cost $25 million.

The construction is likely to begin by the end of this year, with the plant expected to go onstream by the fourth quarter of the next financial year.

Timken, which currently employs approximately 1,000 people in the country, anticipates adding approximately 300 positions to operate the Chennai plant.

Set up in a special economic zone, the plant will get a range of tax benefits, including duty-free import of equipment and material used in the manufacture of goods destined for export.

"The Timken Company is continuing to invest in industrial products and markets, where we have the opportunity to drive profitable growth," said Mike Arnold, president of Timken's Industrial Group, in an email reply. "Our new facility in India represents a significant expansion of our manufacturing presence in this important economy, and we will continue to look for strategic opportunities to build on our growing base in Asia," he added.

Timken is present in the country through its subsidiary Timken India, which was set up in 1987 as a joint venture between Timken and Tata Iron & Steel Company under the name Tata Timken Ltd.

In 1992, Timken bought out Tisco's stake in the JV and renamed it Timken India. The company went public in 1991.

Timken's Indian operations currently include a bearing manufacturing plant in Jamshedpur and a global innovation centre in Bangalore that has the capability to design, develop and test new friction management and power transmission technologies.

Timken, which has had a presence in the Indian market since 1992, also has an extensive and growing network of distributors focused on providing an expanding range of friction management solutions to industrial and automotive aftermarket customers throughout the country.