JK Cement lines up Rs 450 cr for Gujarat, UP grinding units

JK Cement Thursday said it will invest around Rs 450 crore to set up two grinding units for grey cement in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh.

The company will invest Rs 250 crore on a grinding unit in Balasinor, Gujarat which will have an annual production capacity of 0.7 MTPA (million tonne per annum) on completion, it said in a statement.

The foundation stone for the grinding unit was laid on Thursday. The company expects the unit to become operational by Jan-Mar next year.

It has also earmarked Rs 200 crore for a grinding unit at Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh, it said.

JK Cement also plans to invest in capacity expansion of its existing units in Rajasthan. It has already announced a capex of Rs 2,000 crore to enhance its grey cement production by 4.2 MTPA.

"This ceremony today marks a key milestone in JK Cement's journey, given that it's our first foray into Gujarat by way of a manufacturing unit," JK Cement Special Executive Raghavpat Singhania said.

With the expansion in Gujarat and Aligarh along with the brownfield investments in Rajasthan, JK Cement's total capacity of grey cement is projected to touch around 15 MTPA by March 2020.

With grey cement plants in Rajasthan, Karnataka and Haryana, the company currently has an installed grey cement capacity of 10.5 MPTA.

Shares of JK Cement Thursday ended marginally down at Rs 710.80 apiece on the BSE.