India is targeting a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 8-9 per cent in the coming years and to enable this growth, the economy needs the support of its power sector and India's electrical equipment industry is expected to play a critical role in improving its power infrastructure.
Acknowledging the need to enhance the competitiveness of the domestic electrical equipment sector, the Department of Heavy Industries in association with IEEMA has recently launched Mission 2022 plan to make India the country of choice for the production of electrical equipment and reach an output of $100 billion by balancing exports and imports.
The Indian electrical equipment industry is estimated at over $25 billion (Rs.1.20 trillion), and the country aims to reach an output of $100 billion by balancing both exports and imports in the coming years. Currently, the equipment industry contributes 1.4 per cent to the nation's GDP and 10 per cent to the manufacturing GDP.
At a time when the domestic industry has been facing with subdued demand for electrical equipments from the power sector, the mature Indian electrical manufacturing fraternity is now increasingly looking outwards to grow exports as a huge opportunity exists.
In order to provide an excellent opportunity to Indian manufacturers to showcase their products and technologies and manufacturing capabilities to a global audience, the Indian Electrical & Electronics Manufacturers' Association (IEEMA), the industry body representing the country's power and electrical equipment industry, will be hosting its 11th biennial event Elecrama-2014 in early January, to showcase the global competitiveness of Indian products and the capability of domestic manufacturers to develop world class engineering products at competitive costs.
Elecrama-2014, is scheduled to be held at the world class exhibition venue–Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC), Bangalore, India, from January 8 to January 12, 2014. The BIEC will have a gross area of almost 80,000 sqm spread over 7 halls with 1,200 exhibitors and 100,000 quality footfalls.
The event is bound to raise the bar in terms of facilitation and added services so as to make the event a resounding success. With economic deceleration and the sluggish growth in the power sector along with escalating imports of electrical equipment, Indian manufacturers who created extra capacity are now finding it difficult to utilise it. To more optimally utilise their production capacities, they need to focus on expanding overseas and establish an Indian footprint globally.
There is a huge export opportunity for Indian manufacturers of electrical equipment waiting to be tapped. Developing countries across the globe are focusing on electrification to meet the rising aspirations of their people. Even in developed countries, there is increasing demand for electrical equipment for renovation and modernisation of their ageing electricity networks.
Visits to India of decision makers from various utilities from Middle East and Africa not only exposes them to what the industry produces in India but also helps them in upgrading their skills in technologies for managing the transmission and distribution systems in various power utilities in India, both private and public.
Over the years, the Indian electrical equipment industry has developed a diversified, mature and strong manufacturing base, with robust supply chain, and a rugged performance design of products. There is also an emerging global reputation of Indian electrical equipment for sourcing of base products and components and also of Indian transmission and other EPC contractors.
Generally and historically, the Indian manufacturers follow the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards and accordingly the National Indian Standards are drawn from the IEC standards including up gradations and revisions. With globalisation firmly in place, Indian manufacturers also manufacture products which are in confirmation to US /Canada – ANSI, NEMA, IEEE, UL and other standards.
Various other efficiency standards are also being set up like the "Star Labeling" programme initiated by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) that makes it mandatory for some equipment like distribution transformers etc. to have energy efficient ratings. Hence the continuous and constant efforts undertaken by the Indian government in order to upgrade the quality of Indian products has resulted in a positive outlook and acceptance towards Indian manufactured products by countries across the globe. On the technology front, Indian companies are progressing steadily. Currently, India has actively migrated from 400kV to 765kV to even to 1,200kV transmission systems.
In Elecrama 2014, IEEMA has taken a unique theme of 'Go Global' wherein the idea is to focus on global competitiveness of products manufactured in India. Since the theme is 'go global', IEEMA plans to promote international business and get decision makers from various power utilities in the world including West Asia, Latin America, ASEAN countries, SAARC countries and Africa. Elecrama 2012 had nearly 5,000 foreign buyers and contracts worth more than $200 million were finalised. In 2012, for the first time IEEMA organized a reverse buyer-seller meet (RBSM).
The ChangeXChange or the Reverse Buyer Seller Meet (RBSM) is organised with the support of the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India, to provide a focused thrust to Indian exports of electrical equipment to the focus regions.
The event is aimed at providing export impetus to the Indian electrical equipment industry and to promote the "Made in India" brand to enhance exports globally and promote strategic business partnerships between Indian manufacturers and foreign buyers of electrical equipment.
The introduction of RBSM in the previous edition provided a major impetus to Indian electrical exports by introducing Indian products and technologies to global buyers. It was a very valuable experience for the foreign buyers from various countries, Indian industries, utilities as well as other stakeholders as the event showcased the best of technology of the Indian electrical equipment industry.
ChangeXchange 2014, much bigger and power-packed than the first edition (2012), will be the biggest meeting place of foreign buyers who plan to source electrical products and equipment from India. Through the 'Go Global' theme, India will be targeting a 5 per cent share of global trade in electrical equipment in the next ten years in order to help exports reach a level of $25 billion.
Elecrama-2014 will serve to be the ideal platform for Indian industry to connect with the appropriate partners across the globe, including partners from developing nations of the Middle East, Central Asia, West Asia and Africa.
Elecrama-2014 to woo Africa and Asia
The African continent is also the focus region for the Reverse Buyer-Seller Meet (RBSM) at Elecrama-2014. In Elecrama 2012, the RBSM received an unprecedented and overwhelming response from foreign buyers with 276 buyers from 31 countries from Africa, Latin America, ASEAN and CIS in attendance. The African delegation, the largest, included 234 buyers from Benin, Botswana, Burundi, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Maurtius, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
Currently, India is Africa's fourth largest trade partner and bilateral trade is expected to reach $100 billion by 2015. India has already invested more than $35 billion in Africa and the Government of India has extended lines of credit to the tune of about $5.2 billion to African countries with large investments being planned in some African countries in power generation, transmission and distribution segment.
With the continent holding vast potential for developing the energy sector, India can offer conventional technology to upgrade Africa's thermal and hydropower plants and also technology for renewable energy like wind energy, solar and geothermal. Additionally, India can also offer smart metering solutions and systems, where distribution load can be monitored through the computers and data systems remotely.
Funding from multilateral agencies like the World Bank, African Development Bank and IMF has helped developing nations of Africa undertake electrification work vigorously. Visit to India by decision makers from various utilities from Africa will not only expose them to what the industry produces in India but also help them in upgrading their skills in technologies for managing the transmission and distribution systems in various power utilities in their respective countries.
Middle-East nations hold immense potential
Just like India, Middle East nations, too, are undergoing through rapid development in their power sector. The Middle East region has been witnessing strong growth in the consumption of electricity over the past few years, and is further poised to grow at even faster pace in the next decade. In fact, electricity consumption in countries like Qatar and Oman is projected to grow at double-digit compounded annual growth rates during 2011-2014, on the back of an increasing demand from residential and industrial sector.
Oman has been one of the fastest growing countries in the Middle East with installed electricity capacity and consumption expected to grow at CAGR of around 16 per cent and 12.5 per cent, respectively during 2011-2014. Several other Middle East countries including UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, etc. also exhibit strong future growth potentials in the electricity sector.
With growing industrialization and rapid urbanization being witnessed by the Gulf States in the last five years, demand for transmission and distribution networks, too, has increased sharply. As a result, the power T&D sector in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries—comprising The Kingdom of Bahrain, Kuwait, The Sultanate of Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE—is expected to witness rapid growth, with investments totaling $60 billion in the next five years and add 18,000 ckm of network.
Given the flourishing bilateral trade between India and the Middle East nations, which stood at over $205 billion in 2012-13, Elecrama-2014 will provide an opportunity for business visitors from the Middle East countries to also take part in various concurrent events.
Concurrent Events at Elecrama-2014
Elecrama-2014 will also feature other concurrent events such as Trafotech 2014, which provides transformer designers, manufacturers, users and consultants a common platform to review the latest advances and futuristic trends, share operational experiences and discuss the requirements of transformers for smart grid systems. Elecrama-2014 will also feature CEOs Summit, International T&D Conclave and the Engineer Infinite 2014.
Through The Engineer Infinite, IEEMA is providing a platform for engineering students to showcase their innovative projects aimed at providing smart and simple solutions in the electrical energy sector.
Following the huge success of the tech fest in the previous two editions of Elecrama in 2010 and 2012, IEEMA) will once again hunt for India's greatest innovation talent in the electrical sector during the event spread over five days period between January 8-12, 2014 by ENGINEERS INFINITE 2014. The pan-India competition opened for engineering students comprising of undergraduates, postgraduates and diploma students from diverse engineering colleges.
The CEO NITE event is an exclusive 'By Invitation only' business leaders networking platform for the who's who of the global electrical equipment industry will feature 'live' panel discussions with eminent experts, on challenges and opportunities offered by the electrical sector.
Further, a half day program for experience sharing between the global T&D utilities and stakeholders has been organised during the International T&D Conclave. For the global electrical & electronics (E&E) manufacturers, a $300 billion development thrust into the Indian power sector is a massive opportunity. The Indian industry is seeking partners to enhance technology and competency, build capacities and calibrate their proposition to compete on a global scale.
(All photographs are file pictures of Elecrama-2012 held in Mumbai in January 2012)
