(From left) MICO joint managing director V. K. Viswanathan, MD Albert Heironimus and joint MD M. Lakshminarayan in Delhi on Wednesday. Picture by Ramakant Kushwaha

New Delhi, March 16: Bosch, the German automotive and industrial technology giant, will invest Rs 1,000 crore in India in the next three years. Out of this, Rs 550 crore will be used to establish facilities to make products required to meet the new emission norms in the country.

Bosch has been present in India for over 50 years through group company MICO (Motor Industries Company Limited).

?The investment in India will be generated from MICO?s internal accruals,? said V. K. Viswanathan, joint managing director of MICO.

MICO said Rs 550 crore will be invested for making the common rail system in India. Also referred to as the CRDi(common rail diesel injection) technology, it will help meet higher emission norms that are coming into the country from April 1.

The high-pressure pumps for the system will be produced in Bangalore, supported by the production of injectors at Nashik. CRS technology helps vehicles achieve fuel economy, apart from meeting higher emission norms. Bosch has sold more than 20 million common rail system the world over.

For servicing the diesel system, MICO plans to invest in expanding its network of workshops across the country. More than 680 diesel service workshops in the country are being ramped up in line with Bosch guidelines.

MICO, which currently runs 50 car service centres across the country, plans to expand it to 100 centres by the year-end.

For the financial year ended December 2004, MICO had posted a turnover of Rs 2,327 crore and a net profit of Rs 374 crore.

Worldwide, Bosch registered a 10 per cent growth in turnover at 40 billion euros.

?Last year has been excellent for the Indian automotive industry and also for MICO. Worldwide growth in this segment is poised to come from Asian markets, as developed markets are rather stagnant now,? said Albert Hieronimus, managing director of MICO. He said the Indian automobile industry is on a fast track.