CIPSA-RIC invests $20 mn in second plant in India

Bangalore: CIPSA-RIC India, a maker of printed circuit boards (PCBs), said that it invested $20 million (Rs 85 crore) to set up its second plant in India to compete with China, which dominates PCB manufacturing.

CIPSA-India said the new plant can manufacture 5 lakh sq mt of double side and multi-layer PCBs a year. It also has an additional capacity to produce 2.5 lakh sq mt of single side PCBs. Its existing plant in Bangalore, which was set-up in 2006, has an installed capacity of 7,000 sq mt.

The annual consumption of PCBs in the domestic market is about $2 billion, while the production capacity is about $200 million, said Mr Alok Garg, Managing Director. About 80-90 per cent of total imports come from China. The current expansion is aimed to bridge this gap between demand and supply, he added.

At present, CIPSA-India exports about 65 per cent of its orders, and has the potential to export PCBs worth $50 million by 2010, Mr Garg said. The new plant would cater to domestic as well as international demand.

The new plant is highly automated to offer price advantages to the company’s customers, and it would not hire too many people, Mr Garg added.

The company also said Tecnomec Srl, an Italian PCB manufacturer, has bought 10 per cent stake in CIPSA-India. However, it declined to reveal how much Tecnomec has invested.

Tecnomec has strengths in sophisticated PCB solutions, and is the right partner for high-end technology benefits, CIPSA-India said.

CIPSA-India is a joint venture between its Indian promoters Mr Alok Garg and Mr Anil Gupta and the Spanish PCB maker Circuitos Impressos Professionales S.A. The Indian and Spanish promoters have divested 5 per cent share each, the company said.

The company said it expects sales of Rs 80 crore in 2008-09, and Rs 150 crore in 2009-10. Its Indian customers include Pricol, L&T, Solectron Centum, ECIL and 3M. Some of its overseas customers are Zollner, Behr Hella.