By Rishika Sadam

HYDERABAD, July 29 (Reuters) - U.S.-based laboratory

equipment maker Agilent Technologies ( A ) plans to double its

investments in India to expand in one of its fastest-growing

markets, a top executive said.

The company anticipates the Indian market to grow in the

high teens and beyond, CEO Padraig McDonnell told Reuters,

during the inauguration of its center in Hyderabad, a city in

southern India.

CEO McDonnell said the company plans to double its

investments in India over the next three years, without

specifying the amount, and added, "Before the end of the year,

we're going to have new announcements about investments in

India."

Agilent ( A ) generated revenue of $6.51 billion in the previous

fiscal year, with the U.S. being its largest market. It produces

laboratory equipment used in research, production and testing by

pharmaceutical, chemical and food companies.

"We're evenly split across markets, like one-third from the

U.S., Europe and Asia," McDonnell said. However, he declined to

provide details on India's contribution to total revenue, noting

only that it is growing in double digits.

The soaring demand for weight-loss drugs and drugmakers

racing to develop their own versions is expected to boost demand

for Agilent's ( A ) services, McDonnell said.

Indian drugmakers are working on developing cheaper versions

of Novo Nordisk's blockbuster obesity drug Wegovy.

Agilent ( A ) has already observed such demand in other markets,

and anticipates growth in its order book as more Indian

pharmaceutical companies develop drugs for complex diseases, and

work on cell and gene therapies, according to McDonnell.

"All these spaces are very fast-growing markets. So we

expect these drivers to continue to grow. And that's why we want

to kind of invest ahead of the curve," he said, adding that

India is expected to be a bigger growth driver of overall

revenue in the coming years.