JK Cement has acquired Nihon Nirman from Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) for Rs 42 crore. The acquisition of the 3-lakh tonne Nihon Nirman plant will push up JK Cement's capacity to produce grey cement to 4.3 million tonne per annum. | |
| A K Sarogi, chief financial officer, JK Cement, said the company would invest another Rs 33 crore for converting the white cement making plant into a grey cement plant. |
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| The production, which was expected to begin by September, would help JK increase its grey cement capacity at a lower cost, he added. The grey cement, to be produced from Nihon Nirman, will be sold in the northern markets, where the company enjoys a strong presence. |
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| Sarogi said a team from the Japanese firm Taiheiyo Cement Corporation visited the Nihon Nirman site and calculated that it could produce 3 lakh tonne of grey cement per annum. |
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| The plant will cater to Rajasthan market, especially in the Jodhpur and Ganganagar belt. With this new grey cement plant, the third one in the state, the company will save up to Rs 1,000 per tonne. |
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| "It's profitable. If we go for a new grey cement capacity, it will cost Rs 3,500 per tonne, whereas here it will be only Rs 2,500 per tonne," said Sarogi. |
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| Moreover, the company, the second-largest producer of white cement, considers the new plant a 'two-in-one' facility. |
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| "For the time being there is not much competition in the white cement segment. However, whenever the need arises, this plant can easily be converted to a white cement plant," he said. The conversion would require no capital investment, he added. |
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