Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on January 22, 2025
By Nivedita Bhattacharjee
BENGALURU (Reuters) - Safran's India unit expects a nearly 70% revenue boost in 2025 from its defence and space business, fuelled by its work on India’s human spaceflight mission Gaganyaan and rising private-sector contracts, top executives told Reuters on Wednesday.
The Paris-based jet engine maker, 11% owned by the French government, is among the world’s largest aerospace suppliers. It develops the Ariane 6 rocket jointly with Airbus, but is diversifying its supply chains amid Europe’s political instability.
India is strategic in the geopolitical context, Jetendra Gavankar, head of Safran India, told Reuters. "The biggest market in aerospace is still the U.S., but also Oceania/Asia and within that, India is growing in its share for the space sector rapidly."
Two years ago, it bought Bengaluru-based Captronics Systems to become Safran Data Systems India (SDSI) to tap into the country’s aerospace and defence sectors, capitalising on the government’s push to boost private sector participation in these areas.
SDSI, which has been involved with India's moon mission and the development of the new small satellite launch rocket for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), contributes about 10% of Safran’s global space industry revenues.
"We expect it to contribute about 20% to the overall space unit in two to three years," said Noel Ballot, EVP of sales and marketing.
The unit designs simulation systems for mission testing, integrates and verifies rocket and spacecraft components, and helps conduct launch testing among other things.
Safran expects overall revenue to surge almost 70% to 2 billion rupees ($23.12 million) in calendar year 2025, said Niranjan Malode, Regional Director of SDSI, up from 2024's 40% rise.
The company is looking to move some of its European manufacturing to its India hub, said Malode, as it works more closely with ISRO on its upcoming human spaceflight mission Gaganyaan and taps into the up-and-coming crop of space tech startups.
Roughly 30% of overall revenue comes from the niche space business, which recorded revenue of 300 million rupees ($3.47 million) in 2024. That is expected to touch 800 million rupees ($9.24 million) in the calendar year 2025, he said.
The government's "Make In India" push is turning out to be crucial for getting more private and government contracts, he added.
The India projections come as the global company, in December, gave a weaker-than-expected outlook for the next four years.
($1 = 86.5130 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
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