German KSB AG, one of the world's largest pump manufacturers, is hoping to win at least a 20 per cent market share in China within 10 years using its advanced technology in energy conservation.

Currently it has about 15 per cent of the market.

Its products are used in many of the country's major infrastructure construction projects, including the Three Gorges Dam.

They are also used in China's power plants and are part of China's tallest building, Jinmao Tower in Shanghai.

The firm is looking to expand its presence in the country's poorer western and northern regions.

A major maker of pumps, valves and actuators, KSB arrived in China in the late 1970s.
It currently owns an 80 per cent stake in the joint venture KSB Shanghai Pumps Co Ltd.

It also owns two other companies - Dalian KSB AMRI Valves in Northeast China's Liaoning Province and KSB Valves Shanghai.

Its sales volume in China increased 40 per cent last year to 130 million euros (US$166.6 million), accounting for 10 per cent of the company's total turnover globally.

The firm is also looking to use its products in Olympic facilities under construction in Beijing and other mainland cities.

"Asia has become a very important contributor to our overall growth in the last three or four years," said Heinz-Juergen Otto, KSB's CEO, who was attending the company's global management meeting in Shanghai yesterday.

It is the first time that KSB's 50 top managers have met outside Europe.

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)