New Delhi: HCL Technologies, India’s fifth-biggest software and services exporter, has announced that it would spend Rs 2,750 crore for setting up three technology hubs in India, by the next five years.

Kamal Nath, commerce and industry minister has inaugurated the first hub at Greater Noida.

The company would invest Rs 10,000 crore on its Noida-based hub by the next five years. The centre, with a total capacity of 15,000 experts, would concentrate on core technologies in media, home entertainment, publishing and content distribution.

The company would establish its other two hubs at Bangalore and Chennai that are likely to be introduced in the later half of the coming year (2008).

Mr. Vineet Nayar, CEO of HCL Technologies, said, “The idea behind setting up these hubs is to move from a manpower-based pricing to a value-based or output-based pricing. We are planning more such centres. The second centre will come up in Bangalore by the end of next year and will focus on financial services, while the third one in Chennai would look at life sciences.”

While Rs 1,000 crore of investment would be chanellised towards the Chennai hub, about Rs 750 crore is earmarked for the Bangalore hub.

The company’s Chennai hub would be as same as its Noida hub, and involves a similar investment of Rs 1,000 crore. The third centre in Bangalore would be constructed with a total investment of Rs 750 crore. The construction work on both these hubs has already been started.

HCL’s Bangalore-based centre would concentrate on technologies in financial services whereas the Chennai hub would focus on lifesciences.

Mr. Shiv Nadar, Founder of HCL Technologies, said, “We will also be extending such technology hubs beyond large cities to the Tier-II cities of Nagpur, Madurai and Lucknow, thus truly taking technology where the talent is.”

Additionally, the company is also looking to tone up its occurrence in worldwide markets.

“Poland will be a new facility for us and we expect to launch it next month,” Mr Nayar said.