Samsung to Invest $100 mn in India Plant

The South Korean giant Samsung, on friday, announced that it will setup a manufacturing plant in Sriperumbudur, near Chennai and will invest $100 million over the next five years.

A MOU was signed by Samsung Electronics and the Tamil Nadu government under which the construction of the plant will start by January 2007 on 80 acres of land after which it expects to start commercial operations by August, next year.

The plant will initially make color TVs and monitors. Annual production capacity is expected to be 1.5 million and 1 million units, respectively. It will eventually expand to manufacturing home appliances, including flat-panel LCD TVs and monitors, refrigerators, air conditioners and washing machines.

Samsung will employ about 2500 workers to carry out its operations. It currently employs over 1600 employees, with around 18% of its employees working in Research & Development.

This complex is Samsung's second consumer electronics manufacturing base in India. Another plant in Noida is already operational which produces color TVs, monitors and appliances. It also operates an R&D center at the Noida complex.

The main reason for choosing Sriperumbudur as manufacturing hub is the already existing good infrastructure of the place. Also, around 100 of Samsung's suppliers will start manufacturing in Sriperumbudur itself, from where production is expected to commence from August next year.

Mr S. H. Oh, CEO and president of Samsung's Southwest Asia unit said that the Indian complex will become a major manufacturing hub which will not only target the domestic market but also the international export market.