Essen (Germany), Oct. 1 (PTI): German diversified industrial conglomerate ThyssenKrupp has initiated talks with Anil Ambani-led ADAG group to jointly build up to 12 submarines in a contract expected to be worth Rs 50,000 crore.
"We are at early stage (of talks). All I can say is we have the right product to make in India. This is our offer to India and also let's say our customer," said member of the executive board of ThyssenKrupp Oliver Burkhard, responsible for the regions, including India.
Burkhard confirmed that he met Anil Ambani in Mumbai last month and held talks on a possible joint push.
Players such as L&T and Mazagaon Dock Ltd are also said to be in the race for the contract, for which the Indian Navy is yet to issue a request for proposal (RFP).
ThyssenKrupp, the Germany-based 41-billion euro company, expects the contract to be worth around Rs 50,000 crore. Burkhard expects RFP for six submarines initially, followed by another six. Company officials said it would take five to six years to build a submarine.
Reliance Defence Systems, a subsidiary of Reliance Infrastructure Ltd, holds an 18 per cent stake in Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Ltd.
"We have requested Ambani to visit our shipyard here in Kiel (in Germany)," he said.
Top ThyssenKrupp officials are confident that the German government will back the company's proposal. They are hopeful that German Chancellor Angela Merkel will raise the sales pitch at the India-German inter-government consultative meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during her visit to India next week.
"Now when the governments are meeting in October, I think this is one of the things that would be discussed. There is a clear signal from the German government that they are willing to help," Burkhard said.
<,>Recently, ThyssenKrupp India had said it had plans to set up a resource office in the country for procuring metals such as aluminium and zinc for its aerospace and defence-related projects across the world.
India, which is the company's third-largest market in Asia-Pacific, has sales of about 500 million euros and a headcount of 5,700.
ThyssenKrupp, present in five diversified business areas and with 10 operating units in India, has products and services ranging from plant design, engineering, building industrial plants, marine systems and elevators to engine components, bearings and undercarriages.
Burkhard said the company had set a target to reach one billion euros in revenues from India, boost margin to about 10 per cent and take the employee headcount to 10,000.
Trade winds
The upcoming visit of Merkel is expected to boost bilateral trade ties in areas such as clean energy as the two sides are likely to pick up the issue of stalled talks on India-EU free trade agreement (FTA).
"The issue (proposed free trade agreement) would be picked up during the talks," German ambassador Martin Ney said while briefing reporters on Merkel's visit.
Ney said it was high time that parleys on the FTA should resume because it would help to resolve issues on the negotiating table.
After 14 rounds of talks till May 2013, India in August this year expressed disappointment and concern over the EU banning the sale of around 700 pharma products, clinically tested by GVK Biosciences, and deferred talks for the proposed free trade agreement.
