UltraTech Cement to step up exports

ULTRATECH Cement will increase its cement and clinker exports to 4Mt this financial year, up from 3.5Mt during the previous fiscal, said Mr Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman UltraTech Cement Ltd, at a news briefing here today.  With the firming up of overseas cement prices, cement manufacturers who have facilities along the west coast of the country have been finding exports very profitable.

Exports from UltraTech, which accounted for 40 per cent of all cement export out of India in the last fiscal would account for between 42 per cent and 45 per cent in this fiscal according to officials of the company.  Units in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have already shifted to the UltraTech brand, with the rest of the country expected to do so over the next few days, said Mr S. Misra, Chief Executive Officer, UltraTech.  A large advertising re-branding exercise would be launched across 20 to 25 television channels, starting October 25.

UltraTech has a capital expenditure plan of Rs 200 crore. Through this efficiencies will be improved, and de-bottlenecking would generate another 2.5Mt of capacity, said Mr Birla. Other plans to cut operational costs include the study of use of alternative fuels.

UltraTech is also planning to revamp its subsidiary Narmada Cement Company. UltraTech is looking at increasing Narmada’s capacity utilisation and reduce cost inefficiencies.  Saurabh Misra, chief executive officer, UltraTech, said, "We will be looking at achieving full capacity at Narmada Cement. High power cost is one of the primary concerns and there is a possibility that we could draw power for Narmada form the nearby UltraTech plant. However, we are still studying the possibilities."