Mumbai: Cement manufacturer Dalmia Cement (Bharat) on Saturday said it has commenced commercial operations at its manufacturing plant in Chandrapur, Maharashtra, adding 2.9 million tonne to its overall installed capacity.
With this, the company’s installed cement capacity has now grown to 35.9 million tonne, the company said in a regulatory filing.
In 2020, the company had acquired the plant for Rs 410 crore under the IBC process. It had further committed to invest Rs 929 crore for the revival, modernisation, expansion and installing green manufacturing equipment including waste heat recovery systems, solar power, green fuel systems and robotic labs for enhanced quality monitoring.
“Approximately, Rs 900 crore is spent or committed out of a total of Rs 1339 crore. The plant has been turned around in a record time of 15 months from its acquisition under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) process,” the company said.
Earlier, Dalmia Bharat had unveiled its long-term growth and investment strategy to expand its installed cement capacity across the nation to 110-130 million tonne per annum by 2031.
The company said that the growth strategy is being executed through a mix of organic and inorganic opportunities with an inclination towards a more planned and cost-effective organic route.
Commenting on the company’s growth and expansion plans, Dalmia Bharat Managing Director Puneet Dalmia said, “We have hit the road running this year by aggressively following through with our growth strategy nationally. For the western market, in particular, we continue to take our responsibility as a corporate leader seriously by creating a progressive and sustainable ecosystem. Moving forward, and in partnership with the great state of Maharashtra, we look forward to focusing on our ambitious business, social and sustainability goals.”
The company further said that it has been able to reduce its carbon footprint by 22 per cent in the last decade while growing three times to double its profitability.
DCBL Executive Director Hakimuddin Ali noted that this capacity addition will empower the company to produce and meet growing demand for India’s biggest cement market, Maharashtra, especially in the Vidarbha, Marathwada and Khandesh regions.
The additional capacity will ensure the company is able to offer a wider product range to meet increasing cement demand across the nation, the company added.
