Putting firmly behind the happenings of the recent past, Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd. is going ahead with its project plans in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka at a combined cost of over Rs.3,750 crore.
The company has received all the necessary clearances for its upcoming Greenfield project in Andhra Pradesh, and expansion in Karnataka.
The company is putting up an 3.5 million-tonne integrated cement plant in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh by investing Rs.1,100 crore.
It is also expanding its cement facility at Gulbarga in Karnataka to 5.75 million tonnes from the current 2.5 million tonnes. Also, it is putting up a 130-MW captive thermal power unit. The expansion plan in Karnataka will involve an investment of around Rs.2,010 crore.
Besides, it is also putting up a 2X2 million-tonne cement grinding unit, and a 2X50 MW captive thermal power plant at Solapur at a cost of Rs.660 crore.
The Greenfield project in Andhra Pradesh and the brown-field expansion in Karnataka would take three years to go on stream.
The company has already acquired 1,000 acres for its proposed project in Andhra Pradesh. For the Maharashtra grinding venture, it has acquired 120 acres.
Chettinad Cement Group Managing Director M.A.M.R. Muthiah said that the company had a debt-equity ratio of 1:1. To a question, he said the upcoming projects would be financed through a combination of debt and internal accruals. To a specific query, he said there was no plan to raise capital from public.
“In the last 20 years, the installed capacity of the cement units has increased from one million tonnes to 13.5 million tonnes. With the commissioning of new and expanded units, it is possible to scale 20 million tonnes,’’ he added.
Chettinad Cement, he said, would also explore possibilities of spreading its wings to become a pan-India player. In this context, he said the company was looking at project options in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
According to Mr. Muthiah, the Rs.4,000-crore Chettinad Cement is currently operating at 50 per cent of its capacity due to sluggish market conditions.
