Engineering major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is expecting Rs 3,000 crore worth infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka as it seeks to expand its global presence, its chief A A M Naik said today.
"We are looking at expanding our global presence. There is an opportunity we are looking at in Sri Lanka. Almost three infrastructure projects worth Rs 3,000 crore are likely to come up and we believe that we have a good chance of getting them," Chairman and Managing Director AM Naik told reporters on the sidelines of the company's 70th annual general meeting.
Once the resources are tied up, these projects are likely to be materialised during the fourth quarter and the company can bag those projects, he added.
Naik said the company is also looking at a few more countries to expand its international presence.
"We are already in West Asia and also made a foray into the African markets. We will continue to look at some more countries for expansion. But our order mix will continue to be 20-25 per cent international and 75-80 per cent domestic, as the market here is now looking promising," he said.
L&T is also expecting a 15 per cent growth in order inflow this fiscal, he said.
While orders in the hydrocarbons segment in West Asia have not picked up, there is scope in the infrastructure sector. The current order book of L&T stands at around Rs 2,39,000 crore.
Naik further said the company will continue to be cautious while selecting road projects and will continue to concentrate on its core business.
"We have around 17 road projects out of which 6-7 are not profit-making. Few years back, everyone went aggressive when they thought that roads sector is a sunrise industry.
That time we did not understand there could be impediments in terms of right of way, or work will stop, cost will rise and government will not give extra claims because of which majority projects not going well.
