Thales to double India-related business to $750 million over five years

23 June 2008

Paris: French defence and electronics major, Thales, has said it hopes to double its India-related  business, from euro 250 million to 500 million, over the next five years through increased sales in the military and civilian sectors.

"We have a long involvement with India and hope to increase our sales to double in next five years both in defence and civilian areas," Francois Dupont, Thales managing director and country corporate director, informed visiting Indian journalists.

"Every year we are registering a growth of five per cent to eight per cent in business in India," he added.

"In 2000, our sales were 90 per cent in the defence sector and 10 per cent in civilian area. In 2006, our sales were 80 percent in the civilian sector due to the boom in the Indian aviation market. Now we are at 50 per cent in both the sectors," Dupont explained.

Thales is a niche supplier of electronics and also supples radars and other modern equipment to the Indian armed forces. In the civilian sector it has clients such as Delhi Metro, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines.

"We are currently working very actively for an air defence project of the Indian Army that entails the purchase of 1,000 short range missiles," said Bachu Murthi, vice president (strategy), air systems division.