Technology can help companies and governments chase growth while not depleting essential resources, says CEO Beck, during his recent visit to India
10.Christophe Beck, Chairman and CEO, Ecolab
India accounts for 18 percent of the world population, but only four percent of the world’s water resources. Many parts of the country face water scarcity, with cities like Chennai and Bengaluru staring at a Day Zero crisis, a scenario in which public water supply stops completely and taps go dry.
This is a real problem for a fast-growing economy like India, but the country can leverage its technological prowess to find ways to manage, reuse and recycle its water, says Christophe Beck, chairman and CEO of Ecolab, which provides products and services in water, hygiene and sanitation, and energy. It caters primarily to large industrial customers across various sectors like chemicals, manufacturing, metals and mining, and food processing, and works with 725 customers across 3,700 locations in India. Ecolab in India, Beck says, has helped its customers annually treat around 208 billion litres of water.
The 100-year-old company headquartered in Minnesota, US, generated $15.5 billion in revenue last year, and has a market capitalisation of $70.3 billion, as per Forbes. India, along with Middle East and Africa, contributed to three percent of total sales for the company in 2023, but “in terms of technology, partnerships and acquisitions, India is a priority country”, says Beck. The company employs around 2,000 people in India, and will add another 1,000 people to its workforce here over the next few years, he adds.
In a conversation with Forbes India during his recent visit to the country, Beck spoke about Ecolab’s business plans in India, how they are working with companies here to reduce and reuse water, and the state of awareness about water and energy efficiency among businesses and regulators. Edited excerpts: