Exide to spend Rs 300 cr on expansion

The company is coming up with a new 100 per cent EoU in Haldia and modernising the Shamnagar unit in West Bengal.

Exide Industries, the country’s largest lead acid battery maker, has made a budgetary provision of Rs 300 crore in this financial year to fund its expansion plans.

The company plans to ramp up its production capacity by 20 per cent, besides modernising the existing manufacturing unit. Also, the company is scouting for a partner in the US for a join venture for a battery manufacturing facility.

In an interaction with Business Standard, Exide Industries Ltd Vice-President S Kalla said, “In order to meet the growing demand, we are ramping up our capacity and also modernising the existing plants. We have a made a budgetary provision of Rs 300 crore to fund our expansion plans. Further, we plan to acquire a lead smelting unit in the northern region.”

The company is coming up with a new 100 per cent EoU (export-oriented unit) in Haldia (West Bengal) and modernising the Shamnagar unit in West Bengal, which would attract an investment of Rs 150 crore.

The company launched the new version of Tubular battery EL + Tubular battery for UPS systems in Chandigarh.

“The EL + tubular is a tubular battery with zero maintenance for UPS systems. This battery has been made with ironclad tubular technology, which is the best technology worldwide. and having 60 months of replacement warranty. The speciality of EL + Tubular its very long life (approx. 8-10 years) suited for long power crisis,” he added.

With this launch, the company aims to increase its market share by 10 per cent in the Rs 250-crore UPS battery market. The company has a 55-60 per cent market share in the segment.

The company manufacturers almost all types of battery with lead acid system from a small 2.5 AH motorcycle battery to 20,000 AH huge batteries, which power the submarines of Indian Navy.

He added, “We are in a continuous process of developing new products and enhancing existing products in its R&D centre at Kolkata. With the state-of-the-art research centre and ten manufacturing units in India and global presence in Singapore, Srilanka and Europe, the company aims to achieve a turnover of Rs 4,500 crore by the end of this fiscal year. Last fiscal year the company did a turnover of Rs 3,400 crore.

The company is also aiming to double its export in this financial year to Rs 500 crore as compared to Rs 250 crore in the last financial year. The company is eyeing new markets like Europe, Singapore, South Africa, Australia etc in this financial year.

“We are also scouting for a JV partner in the US for setting up a battery manufacturing unit there and to cater to the US market,” Kalla said.

On the Indian market, kalla added, “We have made inroads in the battery market and will be increasing our presence in the rural markets of the country with special emphasis on covering the rural banks and institutional customers.”