Mumbai, July 29, 2005 (The Hindu)

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has decided to divest its stake in L&T-John Deere Private Ltd. (LTJD), a joint venture with Deere & Company, in favour of the joint venture partner for an undisclosed sum, in line with its stated objective of exiting non-core areas to focus on core businesses.

LTJD, in which L&T invested Rs. 87.50 crore, initially introduced tractors in the higher horsepower range and is among the largest exporters, exporting tractors and aggregates to the U.S., Europe and several East Asian countries through the distribution channels of Deere.

L&T still had a glass business as part of its non-core activities, which it was looking to exit.

It hoped to sell the glass business during the current year, A. M. Naik, Chairman and Managing Director, L&T, said at a press conference here on Friday.

L&T is in the process of setting up a warehouse in the U.S. and the U.K. The company is trying to go outside India now and is investing in infrastructure and management in five identified Gulf countries for its core activities.

L&T is looking to increase its presence in development and manufacture of defence equipment. Its contribution to the company is expected to go up to Rs. 1,000 crore in the next 3-4 years from Rs. 200 crore at present, according to Mr. Naik.

L&T's presence in defence equipment is through its heavy engineering division, which covers nuclear engineering, aerospace and commercial equipment for petrochemical refineries.

The company is developing a radar with Bharat Electronics and the Defence Research and Development Organisation and is working on prototyping missile launchers and on military bridges.