CHAIRMAN MESSAGE
Dear Shareholders,
It is a matter of privilege for me to write this letter to you at the conclusion of a
very successful year. In fact, it is a year of turnaround for which your company is
thankful to the customers for their faith and trust in your company. Your company is also
equally thankful to the leadership team including the CEO, the CFO, the management team as
well as the employees who made this possible. The Board members of your company, including
the Independent Directors and the GE Vernova nominated Directors have also strongly
supported the management team in achieving this remarkable growth and turnaround of your
company. Furthermore, they all have collectively ensured that the interest of all the
stakeholders, including the shareholders, are respected.
Let's discuss a bit more in details on the market, the opportunities and how your
company is preparing itself to address the future needs of the market.
Outlook of the market
The FY 2023-24 witnessed a stable market with demand for electricity growing at around
8%. The overall generation capacity reached the level of 442 GW, well supported by
investments towards the expansion of the associated Transmission and Distribution systems.
As India continues to take bold strides towards its goal of becoming a Viksit Bharat by
2047, the demand for reliable and efficient electricity supply is expected to surge. This
necessitates the domestic power sector supporting this ambitious growth plan over the next
23 years to make it happen. In economic terms it means raising India's per capita income
level from current US$ 2,845 to around US$ 15,000, by 2047. During the same period India's
GDP is targeted to be raised to US$ 30 Trillion, by 2047, from the current level of US$
3.9 Trillion. It is not an easy target, as in order to make this happen, as India needs to
grow its GDP at 8 to 9% rate till 2047. India is currently the 5th largest economy of the
world [behind USA, China, Germany & Japan] and is expected to eventually become the 3rd
largest economy in terms of GDP size, by 2030.
It is well known that electricity is the prime mover of the industrial and
infrastructure economy of a country and has, typically, a 10fold impact on securing
overall economic growth of a country. India's current per capita electricity consumption
is about 1,400 kWh which needs to reach around 6,000 to 7,000 kWh level, by 2047, to
support the targeted economic growth. This means, India's electricity infrastructure for
generation, transmission and distribution must grow at the pace of 8 to 9% per year for
the next 23 years, to deliver the aforesaid targets.
You may already be aware that India has setup an ambitious interim target for Renewable
Generation to reach 500 GW, by 2030, out of a total targeted generation capacity of about
850 GW. India currently has 190 GW of Renewable Generation, including Hydro, out of a
total generation capacity of 440 GW. Thus, India needs to almost double its current
overall generation capacity and at the same time, 70% of this new additional generation
must be through Renewable sources.
It is also well understood that renewable generation is intermittent in nature. Hence
any new addition of generation in renewables in the transmission grid needs strengthening
of the transmission systems including capacity building, using high end technologies to
mitigate the risk of a potential grid failure and enhance bulk power transfer between the
different geographic electric regions of India. Your company is well geared to offer its
bouquet of technologies to serve this emerging demand. Your company did its homework well,
by investing adequately in the EHV domain in both AC & DC technologies and is ready to
bring in more technologies, as needed, from its prime shareholder GE Vernova to serve the
emerging demand of the market.
Your company believes that the economic and infrastructure growth momentum, that we
have witnessed in the recent past, will be continued at the same pace, by the newly formed
government.
The global spotlight on the energy transition is intensifying, ushering in a wave of
opportunities in power markets worldwide, including India. It presents a golden
opportunity for a company like ours. With a strong emphasis on grid expansion,
modernisation and digitisation and a growing demand for market-driven solutions, the power
sector is open with opportunities for growth.
Your company, therefore, is hopeful that the market opportunities would continue to
grow. The company is also hopeful that the government would continue with its current
policies on investment and procurement processes.
In addition your Company's prime shareholder and technology provider GE Vernova has
opened up additional export opportunities which will further help the growth and
prosperity of your company.
A brief overview of our business
Your company has been engaged in building India's electrical infrastructure, through
its products and solutions, since 1911.
It has been the pioneer in localising the EHV 765 kV AC technology during the 2007-09
period. Thanks to this early investment and 'made in India' commitment in the Indian
market, more than 50% of the EHV 765 kV AC grid of India is equipped with your company's
technology and solutions. During the same period, it has also been the pioneer for
localising the GIS technology up to 400 kV, leading to significant GIS installations in
India. Around 2011-12 it repeated the same feat in introducing 800 kV HVDC technology as
well as the 765kV GIS technology.
Such early initiatives made your company a leading supplier to the Indian market, by
providing high-voltage transmission solutions, pioneering advancements in 765 kV AC, DC
and 800 kV DC technologies—thereby strengthening its foothold in the domestic power
generation, transmission and distribution space.
In 2013, Indian electric grid became a single frequency synchronous AC grid, by
interconnecting all the five electrical regions of India, well supported by your Company's
technology.
I am glad to share that your company stands ready with a comprehensive portfolio of
technologies, products, services and solutions to make the most of the opportunities that
are available in this sector. By sharpening the focus on building both organisational and
operational capabilities, your company is determined to deliver on the commitments to the
customers while ensuring top-notch product quality, on-time delivery and enhanced client
satisfaction.
Leveraging digitalisation India's transmission grid made significant digitalisation
since early 2000, thanks to PowerGrid Corporation of India's strong initiatives in
building the Unified Load Despatch systems through National, Regional and State level Load
Despatch Control centres. Your company, once again, provided a significant part of these
advance digital systems and software solutions by creating a strong local delivery centre.
In the next digital wave, Central Asset Management Centre was created by PowerGrid
Corporation of India, which made the operations of the national Transmission system very
efficient. Your company delivered this unique system during FY 2014-15.
The State Utilities are now getting ready to invest in their "State Asset
Management Centres' for the respective State level grids. These are emerging opportunities
for your company.
The Distribution sector is in the process of improving the performances of the State
level distribution grids. Revamped Distribution Segment scheme is in the process of
implementation to build SCADA/ADMS systems for over 115 towns and over 300 control
centres. Your company has its product and software solutions to support this emerging
market.
With a majority of India's integrated grids utilising our software solutions, your
company will continue to build on deep domain expertise to deliver innovative digital
solutions that will enhance the offerings and benefit the customers.
Expanding our capacity and resources
Your company is now set to deliver growth. The leadership team recognises the external
and internal challenges that require adept mitigation. On the internal side, your company
is working on improving the manufacturing capacity through simplification and lean
initiatives. The company is streamlining its production processes and expanding production
volume to ensure the timely delivery of products and solutions. Skill development and
adding human resources are being focussed by the respective team leaders to effectively
fulfil customer commitments.
Enabling responsible growth with a sustainable future
While performing business, your Company is also committed to the safety of its human
resources and the communities in which it operates, by implementing its EHS excellence
fundamentals and systems. The leadership team is engaged to improve the EHS systems as an
integral part of company's operational strategy. To create a secure and healthy work
environment, your company utilises natural resources and energy in a sustainable manner to
avoid adverse impacts on our personnel, contractors, customers, the environment and the
communities that are being served—while ensuring compliance with applicable
regulations.
In closing, I express my gratitude to the GE T&D India team, the Board of
Directors, the partners, investors and all other stakeholders for being a part of our
journey. We look forward to another year of success with growth and prosperity of all the
Stakeholders.
Sincerely,
Rathin Basu
Chairman.