UltraTech Cement earmarks capex of Rs 7,000 cr for expansion

Aditya Birla Group company UltraTech Cement Ltd today said it has earmarked capital expenditure plan of Rs 7,056 crore towards expansions for next 3 years.
"The company has earmarked a capex of Rs 7,000 crore towards expansions, brownfield projects and grinding units at various plants, going forward.
"Our capex for FY'15 is expected to be Rs 3,798 crore, for FY'16 will spend Rs 3,053 crore and for FY 17 Rs 205 crore," UltraTech Cement Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla told shareholders at the company's 14th Annual General Meeting here.
The company's installed capacity has been scaled up to nearly 62 million tonnes (MT) annually, inclusive of 3 MT overseas.

"By early 2016, we expect this to scale up to 70 MT when all ongoing projects will be fully commissioned. A judicious mix of internal accruals and borrowings have been used for funding the projects," Birla said.
During FY 14, UltraTech commissioned a 10,000 TPD clinkerisation plant together with a cement grinding capacity of 1.45 MT per annum (MTPA) at Rajashree Cement Works, Karnataka.

It has also set up a 25 MW thermal power plant at Rajashree Cement Works, Karnataka and a 6.5 MW waste heat recovery system at Awarpur, Maharashtra. Consequently, its total power capacity is 709 MW. This caters to around 80 per cent of its power requirement.

"In FY 2014, the cement industry has had to bear the brunt of overall economic environment while demand stayed sluggish. Alongside capacity additions vis-a-vis the incremental demand situation, continued to impair the sector's advancement.
"This demand supply mismatch is expected to stay for some more time. It will lead to prices remaining under constant pressure," he said.
"The acquisition of the 4.8-MTPA Gujarat Cement Units of Jaypee Cement Corporation, comprising of an integrated unit at Sewagram and a grinding Unit at Wanakbori at a cost of Rs 3,800 crore, represents a milestone in UltraTech's growth strategy, strengthening its foothold in the growing western market and bolstering its coastal footprint.

"With this acquisition, the cement capacity of the company stands at 58.8 mtpa in India," Birla added.