Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) is getting a lot of enquiries from various countries, including the Philippines, UAE and Argentina. CB Ananthakrishnan, CMD of HAL, said that Philippines and UAE are showing interest in their helicopters. The company is in discussions with orders from Argentina as well for helicopters.

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He expects positive results from Argentina orders. “We are in discussions with Argentina for helicopters. We expect that order should come through,” he said.

The company keeps getting a lot of inquiries and leads from various countries. “But at the end of the day, how much of these leads will get converted into business, we will have to wait and see,” he added.

Union Budget 2023 is around the corner. When asked about his expectations from the budget, he replied, “We expect the budget to be comfortable to HAL and necessary allocations will be made so that as and when the orders materialise, we will not have any cash flow issues as far as new contracts are concerned.”

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The Indian army has ordered nearly 2,000 unmanned aerial vehicles popularly known as UAVs of various types since the start of the stand-off that took place at Galwan with China in 2020.

Previously, in quarter two earnings conference call, the HAL management mentioned that they are developing one rotary UAV of 200 kg class. While updating on that order opportunity, Ananthakrishnan said the company is not involved in the 2,000 UAVs that the Indian Army has ordered and is focusing on combat drones.

“As far as the Indian army having placed around 2,000 drones order is concerned, it is basically towards mini and small UAV segments and HAL is not into that,” he said.

“Our focus is towards the combat drones, which we are trying to develop,” he added.

Drones will be used for logistical purposes that can carry loads between 5 kg & 40 kg to troops in forward posts.

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The current orderbook of the company stands at Rs 84,000 crore. Apart from this, there is also a visibility of orders worth Rs 36,000 crore to be materialised in the next six months to one year. Repair and overhaul orders will be an additional Rs 15,000 crore.

“In the short-term, there is an expectancy of around Rs 36,000 crore, which should materialise in the next six months. Repair and overhaul orders will be an additional order of almost Rs 15,000 crore over and above this on an annualised basis,” he said.

The company expects revenue growth of 8 percent in FY23 and FY24 and double-digit revenue growth from FY25 onwards.

While updating about the Malaysian order that the company was expecting, he said that the probability of a Malaysian order is reducing.

“We so far have not got any communication on whether it is awarded to anyone else other than HAL but as it looks like, the probability of the Malaysian order does not seem to be very bright. However, we are still hopeful of the order,” he explained.

HAL has a full-fledged production facility for manufacturing of cryogenic engines. The company is working in collaboration with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). “As and when the orders come from ISRO, we will be in a position to manufacture those engines and supply it to them,” he said.

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ISRO's cryogenic engines orders are close to Rs 700-800 crore. “We expect it to keep growing as and when the requirement of ISRO keeps going up,” he said.

For the entire interview, watch the accompanying video

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(Edited by : Sangam Singh)

First Published:Jan 17, 2023 1:23 PM IST