India's largest engineering company by sales, Larsen & Toubro Ltd, said yesterday it had entered into a joint venture with South Korean defense products company Samsung Techwin Co to make howitzer guns in India.

L&T's general manager for product and technology development, Arun T Ramchandani, said the joint venture had submitted a technical bid for the supply of up to 100 guns to the Indian army.

He added, the defense ministry was evaluating the bid.

L&T said in a statement that the joint venture would set up a howitzer integration and testing centre at L&T's defense manufacturing plant in the western Indian town of Talegaon.

It said, the company would manufacture Samsung Techwin's howitzer guns, called K9 Thunder, at Talegaon that would have around-50 per cent of the parts procured from domestic sources.

L&T which would be playing a lead role in the venture submitted a proposal to develop self-propelled artillery to the defence ministry last year. Samsung Techwin is the OEM for Korea's successful 155 mm self-propelled Howitzer called 'K9 Thunder' and would transfer technology to the L&T venture.