Exporting Fiber Optic Cable 3.5mm x 2.5 mm, xenon variety................
HS Code: 90011000
From postcards to video calls, the world has moved on to newer, faster and easier forms of communication in a matter of a few decades. This progress has been made due to the proliferation of optical fibre cable (OFC) networks around the globe. But many miss the fact that India is already the world’s third-largest exporter of OFCs, with exports witnessing double-digit growth over the last few years.
Do you remember how excruciating it was to stream something online a decade ago? Well, in those days, most Internet providers were using standard copper wires that were incapable of supporting data rates that were required for streaming. In fact, we spent more time buffering than browsing. But gone are those days, and today we are able to consume high-definition videos on our connected devices, all thanks to the usage of optic fibre cables (OFC).
While, to laymen, it’s still an ‘Internet cable/wire’, OFC is very different from the standard copper cable. OFC contains hair-like thin fibres that are made of silica glass and is designed for durability and speed that is the hallmark of the present day telecommunication and data networks. Today, OFC is the life blood that supports half the world’s communication networks. In India, the traditional copper wires started being replaced by OFC in the mid-2000s and today India has emerged as one of the largest users of OFCs in the world.
What is more interesting is that India, despite its huge domestic appetite, is also a major exporter of OFC. In FY2017 India’s total exports of OFC was $232.59 million, which makes it the third-largest exporter of OFC in the world, behind US and Japan. In fact, since FY2012, India’s exports of OFC have grown 66.10%. Concurring to the growth, a report published by ReportsnReports reveals that in CY2015, the demand for OFC raw material across the globe increased to 11,017 metric tonne (MT), up by 21.6% from 2014. And guess what? The global demand is expected to increase further by 90.6% to 21,000 MT by CY2020. And, when it comes to India alone, TechSci Research released a report revealing that the Indian OFC market is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 13% between CY2016 and CY2020.
"INDIA is fast emerging as an OFC sourcing destination of choice for many"
These estimates are not surprising as some of the biggest names in communication have shifted over to OFCs in a large way. Tata Communications, a Tata group company, has the world’s largest wholly-owned submarine fibre network – more than 500,000 km of subsea fibre, and over 210,000 km of terrestrial fibre that connects customers of Tata Communications across continents. Similarly, Reliance Communications too has set up a 1,40,000 km, pan-India, OFC network. Also, Indian manufacturers of OFCs, from Birla Furukuwa to Polycab wires, have undertaken major turnkey telecom projects involving laying of OFC across the globe. And as the globe gets more and more ‘connected’ the demand for OFC is only rising.
While Indian OFC manufacturers have managed to create a global footprint, what is interesting to note is that India’s largest export destination for this product is China. China in fact contributes to 14% of our total OFC exports. While this may bring smile of satisfaction to your face that there is at least a category where we are a net exporter vis-à-vis China, this should not be a surprise as China is also the largest importer of OFC in the world. Other destinations for India’s OFC include US, Poland, Germany and Turkey – in that order.
Currently, there is huge demand from China because the country is working on 5G projects – valued at $170 billion – that requires 90,000 km of OFC. Fortunately, for us, because China doesn’t have the capacity to meet its domestic demand, and because of our high standards of quality and competitive prices we are their sourcing destination of choice
But, despite the competition, as India and the rest of the world make a push towards digitisation and more systems and companies make a shift to OFCs, the demand for OFCs is expected to continue grow even further. It’s a very promising time for the industry. The domestic demand is booming and new export markets are opening as OFCs are like the blood vessels for data communication.
Interestingly, India fulfils most of the OFC demands from countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and Africa. In fact, Indian-based original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) cater to almost 80% requirement of Nepal and Bangladesh.
With connectivity becoming as important as oxygen, the demand for OFC will only go up from here.