JK Cement, Dalmia talk venture?

JK Cement, Dalmia talk venture?
23 August 2006


After the recent consolidation, still more to come! This time, the middle-rung companies are now looking at setting up joint ventures.

According to investment banking sources, Dalmia Cement and J K Cement as of last week were talking of forming a joint venture, primarily to fend off the bigger players. Such a move will also leverage geographies — JK has three plants in Rajasthan, with a total capacity of 5Mta, while Dalmia has one unit in Dalmiapuram in Tamil Nadu with a capacity of 3.5Mta. JK is also setting up another 3Mta plant in Karnataka at a cost of Rs 600 crore, which will be commissioned in 2008.

Both the companies, however, deny any joint venture move with Puneet Dalmia, president of Dalmia Cement, denied any such move. AK Saraogi, president-corporate affairs & chief finance officer, J K Cement, too denied the move. Instead, Saraogi said: “We are actively looking for acquisitions in both domestic and overseas markets. The process is on and once we identify the company, we will let you know.”
Published under Cement News