EXCLUSIVE
Our Business Editor reporting from India
OTR Enterprise Solutions, Ekala, an exporter of steel rims for large-scale automobiles, says it hopes to double its Indian export revenue by next year,
Managing Director of OTR, Asanka Rajapaksa, speaking at the EXCON 2025 exhibition, said.
He announced that the company currently has an annual turnover of around USD 5 million from its Indian operations.
“We have been participating at EXCON each time, and it has given us a strong opening to reach buyers in the Indian market. Our orders are growing, and we hope that by next year we will be able to amass around USD 10 million in revenue from Indian sales,” he said.
Asked whether it was viable to invest in a factory in India, he responded in the negative. “Though our orders are increasing from India, we still prefer to manufacture in Sri Lanka and export to India, as transport costs within India are an issue. It is more viable to produce in Sri Lanka and ship to different parts of India.”
“We also have an advantage under the FTA with India, which gives us some tariff concessions,” he added.
Meanwhile, LAUGFS Rubber, the second Sri Lankan participant at the exhibition, said it is looking at exporting Sri Lankan-made industrial tyres directly to Indian construction-sector-based automobile manufacturers (OEMs) in the construction equipment segment.
“Currently, we are exporting Made in Sri Lanka industrial tyres to India via dealers,” an official from LAUGFS participating in the 13th edition of EXCON in Bangalore said. “EXCON provides us a strong opportunity to meet OEM manufacturers as well as more direct dealers to increase our exports.”
LAUGFS Rubber is represented at EXCON by Janadara Jayawardana (General Manager), Nadeema Hettiarachchi (Assistant General Manager) and Muvindu Wickramanayake.
EXCON 2025 is the world’s third-largest construction equipment exhibition and opened yesterday at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre in Bengaluru. Organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry, the event has grown substantially since its inception in 2000.
The five-day event features more than 1,250 exhibitors from 20 countries, showcasing advanced construction technologies and equipment across 3.5 million square feet, and will conclude on December 13.
