Voltas Ltd, part of the Tata Group, is working on a strategy to become the market leader in the country's air-conditioning market by consolidating its presence across regions with a new line-up of products.

With a market share of about 19 per cent in home ACs, it is barely two per cent lower than the market leader (Korean company LG), and is seeking to consolidate its position with the launch of a new line-up of ACs, including ceiling mounted and a tower range to meet the summer demand.

The company has a major market presence in the North (42 per cent).

The Chief Operating Officer of Voltas, Mr Pradeep Bakshi, told Business Line, “The room AC market for 2010 is estimated at 3.8 million units with a turnover of Rs 6,000 crore. This includes both split and windows units. It has been growing at a robust rate of over 30 per cent over the previous year. The company sells one out of every five ACs sold in the country. The penetration level is low at 3 per cent, offering scope for growth for all players.” The company, which has a presence across 5,000 touch points, has outlined plans for a total spend of about Rs 60-65 crore, including Rs 50 crore for marketing, followed by research and development initiatives, he said.

“The industry, which has more than 15 large players, sees positive business trends with growing preference for split ACs. Apart from focus on star rating of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, the ACs are becoming decorative pieces coming in attractive designs and colours,” he said.

“Voltas sold over five lakh units in 2009-2010 recording revenues of Rs 1,313 crore. We expect to sell about 7.5 lakh units during 2011-12. The capacity at our Pantnagar plant has been expanded.

“From a market share of about 9 per cent in 2006-07, we are now at 19 per cent. With the industry growing at over 20 per cent, this momentum will continue,” Mr Bakshi said.

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