21.12.2006

Escorts to double production

Indian tractor manufacturer Escorts plans to double output of cranes and forklifts in 2007.

The company is in advanced talks for private equity funding to expand its construction equipment. A deal hopefully will be struck by February 2007.
The construction equipment subsidiary of Escorts, which makes products such as pick and carry cranes and forklifts, plans to more than double output to about 7,000 units a year in two years. It had a revenue of 3.5 billion rupees in 2005/06.

"There is huge potential in terms of demand generation in the next two to three years,"said executive director Nikhil Nanda . "We need to expand and measure up. Industrial growth, rising incomes, higher government spending on infrastructure and easier foreign investment is fuelling demand in the construction sector.

Nanda said Escorts would focus on construction equipment as well as tractors and railway parts as part of its ongoing restructuring.