RPG earmarks Rs 18,000-cr capex

Unfazed by the economic slowdown, Harsh Goenka-led RPG Group has chalked out a massive Rs 15,000-18,000-crore investment in the next two years for power, retail, tyres, carbon black and transmission tower businesses.

"We have lined up a capex of Rs 15,000-18,000 crore over the next two years across our various businesses, but we have no plans to enter new ones," RPG Group Chairman Harsh Goenka told PTI here.

As it is, the group is in diversified businesses such as power, tyres, carbon black, transmission towers and retail, each having a healthy growth potential, Goenka said.

"We are perhaps the one group which is not shrinking in business but expanding, in the present scenario," he said, adding "even in retail when others are cutting on their plans, we are making new investments."

An investment of around Rs 14,000 crore has been earmarked for power, with power plants being set up in Budge Budge, Haldia, Dumka in Jharkhand and Dhenkanal in Orissa.

In retail, the group plans an investment of Rs 2,000 crore and will set up 400 more Spencer's stores in the next two years. This is in addition to the 400 plus Spencer's stores, including 40 large-format stores that the group is targeting by end-March 2009.

RPG's tyre manufacturing company, Ceat, has already announced an investment of Rs 700 crore in Gujarat for making radial tyres and production here should start by end-2010, Goenka said.