Logistics major Transport Corp of India Ltd (TCIL) is planning to make Singapore a hub for its South East Asian operations. The company has planned to enter Sri Lanka, Thailand and Shanghai by the end of this year.
TCIL wants to become a Rs 200 crore company by 2010 and expects to earn Rs 40 crore from its South East Asian operations by then.
The company has offices in Singapore , Hong Kong and Indonesia , apart from Nepal and Bhutan .
Executive director Chander Agarwal said the South East Asian operations are expected to be in full swing by 2010. “We expect 20% of our net revenue to come from our South East Asian operations by 2010.”
According to Agarwal, it makes sense to set up the headquarters for the South East Asian operations in Singapore as the place offers the best tax advantage, while Hong Kong acts more as a gateway to south China .
“The plan is to strengthen our foothold in South East Asian countries,” Agarwal said. TCIL has also planned to set up base in Europe by next year.
The multimodal logistics company operates in five different divisions —transport, express, supply chain solutions, shipping, fuel trading and wind energy. It has planned to invest Rs 440 crore by 2008 in warehousing, fleet upgrading and expansion, shipping, and IT systems.
“We plan to add one ship every year to our fleet of five,” Agarwal said.
The company runs 6,000 trucks and will add specialised ones for over-dimensional cargo. It has 1,200 offices across the country.
It has also planned to own three lakh sqft of warehouse space by this year. “We might add three lakh sqft, but that will not be owned by us,” he said.