The Indian automotive industry has the potential to reach a size of $33 to 40 billion by 2015 from the current $6.7 billion, chairman of 'CII Auto SCM India 2004,' M Lakshminarayanan, said in Chennai on Friday.
"This includes $20-25 billion of exports, up from the current $1billion," Lakshminarayanan, also joint managing director of MICO, said, while addressing a CII conference on 'The Indian Automotive Supply Chain Conference and Exposition,' here at Chennai.
In terms of employment opportunities, the industry has the potential to provide 2.5 to 3 million additional direct and indirect jobs over this period, he added.
The Indian automotive industry has the ability to become truly global by establishing its footprint in Eastern Europe and Northern America.
Referring to the export opportunities, he said "India is increasingly becoming a significant exporter of automobiles, more importantly in the component sector as global companies are increasingly using India as a platform."
Spurred by the compulsion to reduce costs and source components at optimal prices, vehicle manufacturers abroad, particularly in the US, have started procuring components from other countries like India and China, he added.
CII's Auto SCM 2004 conference-cum-exposition will take stock of the supply chain management challenges faced by the auto industry and evolve a common platform for the automotive industry to learn and share experiences.