Bosch to see double-digit sales growth in China

Bosch Group, the leading German auto technology provider, expects its sales in China to have grown 15 percent this year, driven by strong market demand.

With expected sales of 24 billion yuan ($3.52 billion) in 2009, China is the only market that sees a two-digit growth, while the company's global sales are expected to have fallen by 15 percent this year.

"Personal mobility safety products, such as the ESP electronic stability program and ABS antilock braking system, are the major drivers of our business," said Franz Fehrenbach, chairman of Robert Bosch GmbH.

"We expect the installation rate of ESP to triple, from 7 percent today to 22 percent by 2014."

By the third quarter of 2009, 1 million ABS products were manufactured in Bosch's Suzhou factory, a new record for a single year production.

Encouraged by the market potential for resource-saving and energy-efficient innovations, Fehrenbach said Bosch would expand its new energy related business in China.

Developing the electric car is the firm's top priority, said Fehrenbach.

By the end of 2009, some 35 engineers will work on powertrain electrification projects, as well as hybrid and electric drives, in United Automotive Electronic System, the company's joint venture with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. The number of research and development engineers will soon increase to about 100.

"The electric car is definitely the future. However, the battery is still too costly and we are still in a transition period," said Fehrenbach. "We believe the internal combustion engine will remain the technology of choice in global markets for the next 20 years."

The practical and reachable fuel-saving solutions now are clean diesels, improved fuel injection and start-stop systems, on which Bosch will continue to work, said Fehrenbach.

He added: "But this is just one side of the environmental coin. We are also working to fully tap the enormous potential of renewable energies."

In 2009, some 1.5 billion yuan was invested in China, particularly for technologies in powertrain electrification and renewable energies such as wind and solar. Next month, gearboxes for 1.5-mW and 2-mW wind turbines will go into production.

Bosch also aims to develop more durable battery cells and find technological solutions to fully exploit the potential of the sun, said Fehrenbach.