Schneider Electric eyes tie-ups to charge its green energy ambition
WE WILL DO LESS AND LESS OF MANUFACTURING IN ONE PLACE AS LOCALISATION NEEDS STEADILY GROW ACROSS MARKETS”
THE INDIAN HUB IS CRITICAL BECAUSE IT WILL TAKE CARE OF CUSTOMER NEEDS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, AFRICA AND WEST ASIA”
OLIVIER BLUM
Executive Vice President, Schneider Electric's Energy Management business
French energy and automation multinational Schneider Electric was open to partnerships with Indian firms as they sought to decarbonise their operations and transition to cleaner energy sources, a top company official said.
The firm, which counts India as its third-largest market after the US and China, has been ramping up investments in the country across research and development (R&D), manufacturing and sales support to data centres, buildings, commercial and industrial complexes.
In a conversation with Business Standard, Olivier Blum, executive vice-president of Schneider Electric’s global energy management business said that the growth potential for India was significant as knowledge regarding meeting energy requirements through renewable resources had increased.
“The need for energy efficient and sustainable solutions among Indian companies is rapidly growing. We want to be the digital partner for companies in energy efficiency and sustainability. We could look at partnerships in India depending on the opportunity,” he said. “Today, most big buildings, commercial institutions and complexes in markets such as India depend on grid energy, which is largely fossil-fuelbased. There is a case for creating microgrids, where the source is renewable,” he said.
Schneider Electric, along with Temasek, invested to acquire Larsen & Toubro’s electrical and automation business in 2020 for ~14,000 crore. The business, which sits in Schneider Electric’s whollyowned subsidiary Schneider India, has Temasek holding 35 per cent, while 65 per cent is held by the French major.
A second investment in a joint venture called Greenext will see Temasek and Schneider Electric help industries produce electricity locally through microgrids. Launched in December and focussed on India and Southeast Asia, Temasek has a 65 per cent stake, while Schneider Electric has a 35 per cent shareholding in Greenext.
The L&T acquisition, meanwhile, had not only catapulted India into Schneider’s top three global markets, but had also positioned it as a fourth hub for research, innovation, manufacturing and exports for the company, after France, US and China.
“We will do less and less of manufacturing in one place as localisation needs steadily grow across markets. Therefore, the hub in France will take care of client requirements within France and the rest of Europe. The US hub will take of needs for the North American region. The Chinese hub is targeted at clients sitting in China. And the Indian hub is critical because it will take care of customer needs in Southeast Asia, Africa and West Asia,” Blum said.
The company had indicated earlier that it intended to double exports from India in the next four years.