IBM ANNOUNCES $6 BILLION INVESTMENT IN INDIA

UNCLAS CHENNAI 001187 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EINV EIND IN SUBJECT: IBM ANNOUNCES $6 BILLION INVESTMENT IN INDIA ¶1. (U) During a June 6 visit to Bangalore, India's IT hub, IBM Chairman and CEO Sam Palmisano announced the company's plan to invest $6 billion over a three year period in India. An IBM press release quotes the chairman as saying, "India and other emerging economies are an increasingly important part of IBM's global success. If you are not here in India, making the right investments and finding and developing the best employees and business partners, then you won't be able to combine the skills and expertise here with skills and expertise from around the world, in ways that can help our clients be successful. I am here today to say that IBM is not going to miss this opportunity." The announcement was made in the presence of Indian President A.P.J Abdul Kalam at a company-organized Software Developemnt Conference at Bangalore. ¶2. (U) The $6 billion investment represents almost a tripling of the company's investment in India and places IBM among the top U.S. companies in terms of total investment in India. IBM will use the investment to establish several different facilities in India dealing with technology innovation, telecommunications research and software services. The company already employs about 43,000 employees in 14 cities in India but was not able to provide an estimate of additional staffing represented by the newly announced investment. ¶3. (U) "This announcement reflects the company's faith in India," Varsha Chainani, Country Manager Corporate Communications, told Post. Chainani said the company was still working on the breakdown of investments but plans call for software service delivery centers to be located in Bangalore along with the IBM Systems and Technology Group's Innovation, Development and Executive Briefing Center and the On Demand Solutions Lab. The Telecommunications Research and Innovation Center will be located at IBM's India Research Lab in Delhi. Chainani reiterated Chairman Palmisano's comment that the company saw a huge potential in leveraging the low cost, high quality talent pool available in India. "We see a bright future here in India" she told Post. HOPPER