Ubifrance and the French Trade Commissions in India organized the Indo-French Technology Meet 2011 on Sustainable mobility on 26th September 2011 at the Embassy of France, New Delhi. A real concentration of information and expertise, key representatives of the Indian industry and leading French companies participated to present their latest innovations and state-of-the-art technologies and shared their views on the huge growth potential in this field in the Indian market.

The seminar was jointly inaugurated by: Mr Sanjeev Kumar Lohia, Officer on Special Duty, Ministry of Urban Development, Mr Christian Le Petit, Director General - Urban Development, City of Rennes, France, Mr Patrick Manon, French Trade Commissioner and Mr Jean-Marin SCHUH, Minister Counsellor of France to India who also delivered a welcome address for all participants. The programme started with a presentation on successful projects on sustainable mobility in Rennes (France) by Mr Christian Le Petit.

There were presentations from key representatives of participating French companies like EGIS Rail, Lumiplan, URBACO, STERIA, AREP, Air Liquide on their latest technologies and innovations.

The programme also included presentations from the representatives of the Indian sustainable mobility industry. Mr Kailash Mishra, Chairman & CEO - EG Gas Limited talked about different ways of reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions in the road transport sector whereas Mr M R Murali, Founder, Nammacycle presented the alternative modes of transport that can be used in this regard.

Organised in four theme-based pavilions, these companies displayed their knowhow on these four themes namely: Optimized Public Transport Management, Green energy, Traffic flow and Urban Safety and Alternative modes of transport. There were one-to-one B2B meetings organized between French and Indian companies.

With the goal of improving traffic flow in the cities, improving safety, saving energy and time and reducing the ecological footprint of automotive transport, these French companies offer reliable, tailor-made solutions best suited to the Indian context. The Indo-French Technology Meet 2011 presented a unique opportunity to these companies to work out business partnerships in the field of sustainable mobility for a long-term Indo-French collaboration.

Ubifrance is the French agency for international business development, a key public partner in export for French companies. Its complete range of services include providing information (on markets, legal, regulatory, international financing, calls to tender, sector watch), export consulting, sales actions (prospecting missions, partnership meetings, trade events abroad, communication in the international press, etc), and the Volunteers for International Experience (Volontariat International en Entreprise - VIE) for the international deployment of skilled human resources. To support French companies of all sizes and all sectors in their development on foreign markets, Ubifrance mobilises the expertise of 2,500 persons in France (Paris and Marseille) and in 120 other countries through its Missions Economiques, clubs and associations, and a network of Press Services.

(Sophie Clavelier, Head of Infrastructure, Transport, Industry Department, French Trade Commission Consulate General of France, Bangalore. Email: sophie.clavelier@ubifrance.fr)