Loco MNCs seek to ride metro rush

KOLKATA: Ambitious metro rail service plans in major Indian cities are opening up multi-billion dollar opportunities for rail car manufacturers. Top global companies like Bombardier Transportation, Siemens, Areva along with a number of Chinese and Spanish companies are vying for the space.

���It is the right time to invest in India. We are looking at developing a vendor base and an engineering base in the country. Our new factory at Salvi near Baroda would cater to the huge growth potential in the domestic market,��� said Bombardier Transportation India (BTIL) managing director Rajeev Jyoti. BTIL is a 100% subsidiary of Montreal-based Bombardier. ���We want to establish and mature our base in India in the medium term before looking at opportunities across South East Asia,��� Mr Jyoti said.

Armed with a Rs 3,000 crore order, Bombardier recently inaugurated a new factory that will initially manufacture 424 coaches for the Delhi Metro. Cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai-I and II, Chennai and Kochi are keen to launch metro rail services, so the potential market is huge. ���We are also keeping an eye on Kolkata���s East West Metro project and would participate as and when the tenders are called in,��� Mr Jyoti said.

Mass Rapid Transit Systems (MRTS) is clearly being eyed as the biggest growth area. Bombardier is also open to taking equity positions in projects being conceived as public private partnerships (PPP). ���We are definitely open to such options.��� he said.