Chennai, March 31 (IANS) French power transmission and distribution equipment major Areva SA’s Indian subsidiary, the Rs.2,655-crore Areva T&D India, is hoping to double its revenue by 2012, said a top company official.
“We will also increase exports out of India, taking it to 25 percent of our turnover from 14 percent now,” Areva T&D chairman and chief executive Philippe Guillemot told reporters here Tuesday.

Guillemot also inaugurated the company’s new Rs.2.5-billion production facility near here to make gas insulated substations, circuit breakers and disconnectors.

The new plant is part of Areva’s Rs.9.5-billion investment to set up new plants to make power transmission and distribution equipment in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.

In Tamil Nadu, the company will inaugurate a condenser bushings and instrument transformer plant at Hosur Wednesday.

According to managing director Rathin Basu, nearly 40 percent of the investment has gone into the company’s plants in this state.

According to him, the market size for gas insulated substations in India is around Rs.9.6 billion, of which Areva commands around 40 percent.