German industrial conglomerate Siemens yesterday said it plans to inject half of its 10 billion yuan mid-term investment in China into energy-saving and environmentally friendly technologies and solutions, a move aimed at expanding its leading position in this field.

In fiscal year 2007, the company's sales and new orders in China both surged by 21 percent to 53.3 billion yuan and 60.7 billion yuan respectively. It is on the way to reach its ambitious goal of 100 billion yuan in annual orders by 2010.

"With its unique and broad portfolio, Siemens is well poised to match the challenges China faces in the years to come - especially in the fields of infrastructure, energy saving and healthcare. As an integral part of the Chinese economy, in the coming years the company will focus on environmentally friendly technologies," said Richard Hausmann, president and CEO of Siemens China.

"We will further expand our portfolio in environmentally friendly technologies to reach 50 percent of our sales in this field by 2010," he said.

Siemens has signed many agreements in China in fiscal 2007 in the field of energy and environment. It supplied the ultra-supercritical technology for Huaneng Yuhuan power plant, which ranks first in the world in terms of efficiency, unit output, environmental protection and resource saving.

The company secured a 334 million euro contract to construct a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) power transmission line between Yunnan and Guangdong. It also won the contract to provide 500 of the world's most powerful and energy-efficient 6-axle freight locomotives to China.

Siemens portfolio now covers the entire energy chain with its energy-efficient products and solutions. The company has also invested in a wide range of alternative energy sources, from wind technology to fuel cells, said Hausmann.

Siemens had earlier said it is restructuring its portfolio. The business groups in future will be organized in three sectors - industry, energy and healthcare.

The industry sector will comprise the business of automation and drives, industrial solutions and services, transportation systems, Siemens building technologies and Osram. The energy sector will comprise power generation, transmission and distribution. The healthcare sector will comprise the medical solutions group.

The company now has over 90 operating companies and 60 regional offices across China. In fiscal 2007, it added 7,000 staff members to its local operations, becoming one of the largest foreign-invested enterprises in China, with over 50,000 employees.