Bosch group companies to invest about Rs. 1,000 crores in India over next 4 years
Rs. 550 crore set aside for launch of Common Rail Diesel Injection Systems in India

August 23, 2004: Bosch, the world’s second largest provider of automotive technologies, today announced plans of its group companies to invest about Rs. 1,000 crores in India over the next 4 years as part of its strategy to focus on Asia to drive global growth. A significant part of this investment will be directed towards the introduction of the Common Rail Diesel Injection Systems including application, testing and manufacturing. Bosch has been present in India since 1922 through its office in Calcutta and since the last 53 years through its subsidiary, Motor Industries Company Limited (MICO).

“Asia, and in particular India, will play a significant role in our growth plans,” said Dr. Bernd Bohr, Member of the Board of Management and Chairman of the Automotive Group, Robert Bosch GmbH, who has also been assigned additional responsibility for India. “

Currently, Bosch is a 36.4 Billion euro company, with business interests in automotive technology, industrial technology and consumer & building technology, with the automotive division contributing about two thirds of its global turnover. Given the rapid developments by
the automotive industry in India, and significant reduction in the technology generation gap between Europe and India, Bosch will transfer global automotive technologies to Mico to enhance technological sophistication of its customers in India who include global and Indian
OEMs.

Among the latest and most advanced automotive technologies pioneered by Bosch to be launched in India will be the Common Rail Diesel Injection System. “The Common Rail system has created a success story for Bosch over the past few years. Common Rail has
contributed to making diesel cars cleaner, more economical, less noisy, and sportier than ever”. This is one of the main reasons for its success in Europe, where in 2003, almost 44 percent of all new passenger cars that were registered, were diesel powered. The company
believes that there will be a successful adoption of this technology in India as well. The first locally-manufactured Common Rail systems are scheduled to come off production lines at Mico by early 2006.

Common Rail provides an environmentally clean technology solution that conforms to the current international emission norms. With the increase in global demand for diesel and emergence of diesel as the fuel of choice for countries like India, Bosch will introduce several technological enhancements of the diesel fuel injection systems to make automotives cleaner, safer and more economical. The company believes that as the market for diesel expands, 60% of the diesel applications will be Common Rail systems over the next 8 -10 years.

All this augurs well for Mico in India. “Mico is already a leader in the Indian automotive market. We will introduce new products and technologies from the global portfolio of Bosch over the next few years to strengthen this position and respond to the rapidly changing and challenging environment,” said Dr. Albert Hieronimus, Managing Director, Motor Industries Company Limited. “We will invest further to build up capacities in India and with technology infusion from Bosch, we will be well-placed to serve our customers, both global and Indian”.
Bosch will further develop the R&D competence of Mico. Mico will also play a significant role in the export market. The strengthened presence of Bosch in India will entail significant benefits for Mico that has so far enjoyed a large share of the diesel fuel injection systems
market, with an average 13% growth per annum over the last few years.

Bosch will also use its presence in India through Mico to further promote its interests in nonautomotive spheres including Power Tools, Security Technology and Packaging Machinery. The company sees considerable growth potential in these sectors. Bosch also plans to further expand its software development capacities in India through its subsidiary, Robert Bosch India Limited (RBIN), through an additional investment of 85 crores at the Bangalore campus. RBIN was founded in 1998 and has acquired an excellent reputation for its software development capabilities within the Bosch world.

About Bosch Group:
The Bosch Group, a German company, is strong globally in the business sectors Automotive Technology, Industrial Technology, as well as Consumer Goods and Building Technology. In 2003, worldwide sales were EUR 36.4 billion. The Bosch Group operates 258
subsidiaries, of which 215 are located outside Germany, and has a total of 2,39, 000 employees worldwide. Sales of Bosch Group in India in 2003 was 413 million euro, of which 361 million euro was from automotive technology.

About MICO:
Motor Industries Company Limited (MICO) is a Bosch Group company present in India for the last 53 years and has catered to the Indian auto market with technology support from Bosch. It is the largest Indo-German company and a household name in the country today.

Mico has developed excellent R&D and manufacturing capabilities. Its strong customer base and the market leadership are a testimony to its technology and quality of products. Mico currently has 4 plants in India including 2 in Bangalore and 1 each in Jaipur and Nashik. All the 4 plants are TS 16949 and ISO 14001 certified. The service network of Mico spans across 1,000 towns and cities across India. Over 10,000 employees are currently employed with Mico across its R&D, manufacturing and sales and service network.