No final plan yet for Kesoram biz restructuring

B K Birla flagship company Kesoram Industries, which is working on a restructuring plan to come out of a financial mess, is yet to arrive at any 'firm' decision.
"Business restructuring discussion at the 'committee level' is going on. No final decision has been taken," Kesoram Secretary Gautam Ganguli told PTI.
He was reacting to rumours that Kesoram may hive off its Uttarakhand unit, the main unit among the Birla Tyres production facilities in the country.
Sources said the restructuring committee comprising two independent directors and company vice-chairperson Manjushree Khaitan is likely to arrive at a decision in the next two to three months.

The committee will look into various options including public-issue, another rights issue, hiving off of the tyre unit and induction of a strategic partner.
Interest burden has expanded in the first nine-months of 2014-15 to Rs 288 crore from Rs 258 crore. In 2013-14, total interest burden was Rs 539 crore.

Sources indicated that Kesoram was concentrating only into tyre business which is bleeding the company financials.
The cement business is gaining its importance in the company's revenue kitty.
In 2013-14, tyre revenue was Rs 3,092 crore while its cement revenue was Rs 1,702 crore. But, in the nine-month period of the current fiscal tyre revenue had slipped to Rs 1393 crore against Rs 1569 crore registered in the corresponding period of 2013-14. Tyre loss ballooned to Rs 190 crore in the April-December 2014 against a profit of Rs 42.80 crore.

Cement revenue during the 2014-15, in nine months till December, had expanded to Rs 932 crore from Rs 793 crore in the comparable period last year.