Kluber to make India export hub for SE Asia

Kluber Lubrication, the Munich-based Euro 500 million specialty lubricants maker, is planning to make its Indian subsidiary, Kluber Lubrication India Pvt Ltd an export hub for Southeast Asian market.

The company, which has 2,500 lubrication products in its portfolio, intends to shift more products to India to increase its presence in the emerging markets in SE Asian countries.

According to KRV Parameshwar, president and CEO, Kluber Lubrication India Pvt Ltd, the company is looking to manufacture a wide range of industrial lubricants at its factory in Mysore for both the domestic and export markets.

"We are producing only 20 products in India and are looking at introducing five more products this year. We will also expand our capacity to meet the export commitments," he said.

Kluber plans to introduce new products for special applications in automobile, cement and steel industries this year. It is supplying speciality lubricants for textile mills.

To further increase its share in this market, the company has entered into an agreement with textile machinery division of Voltas Ltd. Voltas will be the sole distributor of Kluber lubricants for the spinning industry in India. With this tieup Voltas aims to garner an additional sales of Rs 10 crore in the first year.

He said the company has already commenced exports to Sri Lanka and will start shipments to other major markets in SE Asia this year.

"India and China are two growing markets for us. Our parent company Kluber Lubricants is now focussing on expanding markets in these countries. Our Chinese subsidiary will concentrate on the East Asian market, while the Indian subsidiary will focus on SE Asian markets," he told Business Standard.

Kluber is also intends to more than double its investments in India over the next couple of years. Till now, it has invested Rs 20 crore in setting up the Indian venture. During the current year, the company is investing around Rs 5 crore to increase the capacity at its Mysore plant, he said.

Parameshwar said Kluber is growing faster than the industry. At present, the speciality lubricants' market in India is estimated at Rs 550-600 crore and is growing at 15 per cent annually.

Kluber is witnessing close to 30 per cent growth in India. Kluber is expecting to record a turnover of Rs 50 crore this year, a growth of 25 per cent compared with 2006.