Domestic handset maker Lava plans to set up a research and development center in Hyderabad. The talks with Telangana government are in advanced stage. Lava has a manufacturing unit in Noida. The company has signed Rs 500 crore for its second manufacturing plant in Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh) which will be set up over 20 acres of land allotted by the government and will be operational in 2017.
The Company will target production capacity of 5 million phones per month once fully functional. “We have already submitted an application to Telangana government for setting up an R&D centre and discussions are at an advanced level. Once it gets okayed from the state, we will start an R&D centre in Hyderabad. The plan is to have 200 people at the proposed centre,” Sandeep Dongre, Vice President and Business Unit Head South, said.
The company already has an R&D facility in Bengaluru with more than 400 employees. “We have decided to invest Rs 200 crore in R&D over the next three years,” Dongre said. The company had said it will invest Rs 2,615 crore over the next seven years in three phases) to set up two manufacturing plants in the country. The company will complete the investment plan in five to eight years.
“In phase-I, we have invested Rs 56 crore and in phase-II, we will be investing 1,052 crores. In phase-III, we will be completing an investment of Rs 2,615 crore. In phase-I, the company will be able to produce 2.5 million handsets per month, 5 million a month in phase-II and 18 million handsets per month, Dongre said.
Lava claims to number one in Thailand and also exports to countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Russia. It now plans to enter the African market. The company has 10.5 percent market share in India in terms of volumes. The majority of the handsets are in feature phone segment. Smartphones, however, have increased to 30 percent last year from 20 percent the previous year.