Linde Group to source more from India

The €15.3 billion Linde Group, a global major in industrial gases and engineering services, has identified India and China, grouped as the ‘best cost countries’, from where it will source most of its products and services to be delivered across the globe.

“In 2013, Linde will place more of its orders in best cost countries, especially in India and China,” the gas major has said in its just released annual report for calendar 2012.

“It’s a reiteration of the competitive advantages of India as a global sourcing base,” Linde India managing director S K Menon told DNA Money.

In 2009 Linde launched its global procurement initiative and further expanded it in 2012, under which procurement centres in Europe, India, China, Korea, Abu Dhabi and in the US were strengthened further.

“The global network of procurement centres has been instrumental in increasing competition between suppliers. The group expects to achieve further significant cost reductions by pursuing global negotiation strategies,” Linde said in the report.

In 2012 the group spent around €11 billion (Rs77,500 crore) on purchasing in various markets worldwide, of which €9.3 billion related to the gases division and the balance €1.7 billion engineering division.

It buys a broad range of goods and services including energy, gases, gas cylinders and valves, tanks and tank equipment, vehicles, healthcare equipment, components for large-scale plants, complete small plants, and also IT hardware and software.

The development comes when Linde India, the domestic listed arm of Linde AG, has just changed its name from BOC India last month to align its operations with the global operations of its parent.

Linde India is in the midst of constructing two large air separation plantsat an investment of Rs540 crore.

The operational integration would give the domestic listed entity leverage in getting businesses from other sectors and also from clients such as public sector companies, its chairman Sanjiv Lamba had said earlier.

@SumitMoitra