Indian firms eyeing Africa's power, mining sectors

In a bid to tap into Africa's growing power and mining sectors, some 30 Indian companies in these sectors are attending the 11th West African Mining and Power Exhibition (WAMPEX) here.

The participation of the companies in the event, being held May 28-30, has been organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) with the support of India's ministry of commerce and industry with an aim to help them forge new alliances with African companies in the two sectors.

"There are lots of opportunities in Ghana, and for that matter Africa, for Indian companies to take advantage, and so, the companies from India have come to showcase what they can offer," Rachna Jindal, deputy director of CII, told IANS.

Jindal said the companies participating in WAMPEX 2014 are looking for good partners that will help them make their mark in mining and power generation across Africa.

"We have the technology that is appropriate and are ready to make our expertise available to those countries that need it," she added.

India's High Commissioner to Ghana Jeeva Sagar said that "Ghana is rich in resources while Indian technology and expertise in mining and power sectors is appropriate to and consistent with this friendly country's developmental model".

"The coming together of these complementary strengths augurs well for the bilateral economic cooperation between India and Ghana," he added.

Shubham Maheshwari, director of Shashwat Cables in Dehradun in the north Indian state of Uttarakhand, said his company was looking for opportunities in Ethiopia and Ghana even though they have their sights set across the African continent as a whole to invest.

"We want to partner with companies in the power industry initially to supply our products but will be looking at joint ventures that will eventually lead to setting up production facility in Africa," he said.

"The exhibition has exposed the huge potential that the power sector offers for investment in Africa as most of the countries are trying to develop power generation, and with India offering a competitive edge with quality and standard products, we can penetrate this growing market," Maheshwari added.

(Francis Kokutse can be contacted at fkokutse@gmail.com)