SAP to invest USD 1 bn in India

NEW DELHI: With designs to make India its research and development hub, German software major SAP AG on Wednesday announced it would invest $1 billion (nearly Rs 4,500 crore) and double headcount in the country over the next five years.

"We will invest $1 billion in India in the next five years", SAP CEO Henning Kagermann told reporters here.

The company has already invested half-a-billion dollar so far in India, where it has two centres in operation -- SAP Labs and SAP India.

Kagermann said the company would increase the headcount in India to 4,000 by the end of this year and hoped to double the number over the next five years, riding on the demand for SAP's products.

Earlier in the day, he inaugurated company's new office in Gurgaon, which will operate as a new Centre of Excellence for catering to customer requirements in India.

"An increase in India's contribution to global research and product development is a natural progression and by the end of this year, India will make up a significant 20 per cent of the global R&D pie", Kagermann said.

India is a vital component of SAP's research and development, global services and support network, he said, adding that "we are seeing phenomenal growth in demand for company's solutions from Indian enterprises.

He, however, did not give specifics regarding how much investment would go into SAP Labs or SAP India and the plans to raise headcount.