In promised land India, Siemens CEO Roland Busch prepares for the long haul
Mint soon after a town hall with engineers at Siemens Ltd, the conglomerate's Indian subsidiary. On Thursday, Siemens shares touched a lifetime high of ₹7950, marking an 112.43% return on investment over the past year. India's economic growth rate of 6-7% significant and speaks for itself; however, if the share of industry in India's GDP grows from the current 17% to 25%, this would add a potential $1 trillion to the economy, he added.
In May, Siemens announced an investment of over ₹1,000 crore to expand two of its 32 factories in India, in addition to the capacity expansion at Kalwa and Goa in November 2023. Siemens, which operates in technology, manufacturing, industrial automation and rail transport, has invested over €100 million in India in FY24, and around €1 billion over the past 7-8 years, as the country renews and expands its infrastructure. The formation of a coalition government at the Centre will not dent India's growth trajectory, Busch said.
"I do not see that this is a broken trend...I do believe it is great that the current ministers as for the relevant ministries are still the same guys in place." While Busch is optimistic about his company's prospects in India, he's concerned about the slow progress in finalizing the India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The Siemens boss pointed out that both sides may have to relax their demands to strike a deal quicker. "Free trade agreements between India and Europe are at the top of my list, and this has been going on for ages, and we have not come to a conclusion here.
We should make it easier... agree on certain base principles, and not on the full-fledged trade agreement, where every aspect is reflected," Busch said. One of the hurdles to an FTA could be the
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