Reliance Infra to enter cement business

Reliance Infrastructure will get into cement sector in a big way and has chalked out plans to set up cement plants with a total capacity of 20 million tonnes per annum, the company chairman Anil Ambani told shareholders at the 80th annual general meeting here today.

He said the company will invest Rs 10,000 crore on building the cement plants over the next five years which will make the company among the top 5 cement player in the country.

Last week, Reliance Cementation signed an MoU with Maharashtra government to set up a 5 million ton integrated cement plant in Yavatmal with a grinding unit at Batibori in Nagpur district at an investment of Rs 2,250 crore.

He said cement industry grew by 8 per cent even during slowdown in 2008-09 and is expected to maintain the same growth pattern in the next 10-15 years.

Giving reasons for entering into cement Anil Ambani said, "As a natural extension of the power and infrastructure interest of our group, it gives us strategic advantage to enter into cement."

He observed that nearly 40 per cent of the cost of manufacturing cement comes from coal, fly ash and power.

"Given that all the three ingredients are at the core of our existing portfolio, there are obvious synergies that are waiting to be exploited," he said.