Displaying items by tag: Madhya Pradesh

India: The family of worker Rajaram Kushwaha has reported that he died after being taken to hospital for injuries sustained while working at a cement plant near Maihar, Maharashtra. The Free Press Journal newspaper has reported that Kushwaha’s family has requested that police lodge a freedom of information request of plant management into the circumstances of the ‘mysterious’ tragedy.

India: A worker has died after being caught in a belt at Ultratech Cement’s Manawar cement plant in Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar District on the morning of 17 June 2023. Local press reported that 30-year-old Tikam Singh succumbed to his injuries after becoming trapped in the equipment. The police have launched an investigation into the incident.

India: JK Cement has inaugurated a US$341m new line at its Panna cement plant in Madhya Pradesh. The new line doubles the plant's capacity from 3.3Mt/yr to 6.6Mt/yr. Press Trust of India News has reported that the line is equipped with optimised kiln systems, energy-saving technologies and a waste heat recovery plant. The expanded Panna plant will help serve ‘growing demand’ in Central India, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Managing director Raghavpat Singhania said "Our new Panna plant production line is a key pillar in our comprehensive business expansion plan, propelling us towards our vision of becoming a leading player in the cement industry. This strategic expansion allows us to meet the rising demand for high-quality cement, ultimately enhancing our ability to serve our customers.”

India: Kaushalya Logistics Limited (KLL) has initiated operations of a hub depot in Varanasi for JK Cement. The depot, operational since 1 March 2024, is a significant expansion for KLL, enabling it to cater to the entire Bihar region and reinforcing its presence in the cement industry. KLL has also announced the decision to begin operations of a depot for Adani Cement in Madhya Pradesh. This is expected to commence in early to mid-2024.

Uddhav Poddar, Managing Director of KLL, said "KLL has reached notable milestones, commencing operations at a new Hub depot in Varanasi exclusively for JK Cement, effective 1 March 2024. This move signifies a significant stride in KLL's commitment to excellence and strategic expansion within the cement logistics sector.”

India: Adani Group will invest US$603m in the construction of a 4Mt/yr clinker plant at Chorgadi and grinding plants in Dewas and Bhopal. The combined capacity will be 8Mt/yr. The move is part of a US$9bn investment which the company says will create 15,000 jobs across various sectors.

India: UltraTech Cement has deployed five electric clinker trucks at its Dhar cement plant in Madhya Pradesh. Asian News International has reported that the trucks will convey clinker to the producer’s Dhule grinding plant in Maharashtra. The company expects the trucks to reduce its CO₂ emissions by 680t/yr.

UltraTech Cement is committed to electrifying 500 vehicles across its operations by the end of June 2025.

The Indian corporate rumour mill ramped up this week with speculation that UltraTech Cement and Adani Group might possibly be interested in buying Heidelberg Materials' assets in India. This follows the story broken by the Economist newspaper last week that JSW Cement had made an unsolicited offer to buy them. However, when HeidelbergCement India was asked by the Bombay Stock Exchange what exactly was going on, it replied that it was unaware of any such development and that it did not comment on market speculation.

A week later though and now another related story has popped up. In this case it is unclear exactly what the Hindu newspaper actually knew. The country’s two largest cement producers are locked in a battle for capacity expansion and any opportunity is likely to be of interest to them both. Yet the newspaper did quote a source who said that any divestment by HeidelbergCement India (HCI) would involve a “full-fledged bidding process,” implying that something may be going on.

Germany-based Heidelberg Materials operates four main subsidiaries in India: Gulbarga Cement; HC Trading (India); HCI; and Zuari Cement. HCI and Zuari Cement are the main two in terms of cement production. Heidelberg Materials entered the market in 2006 via a number of purchases and a joint-venture. It then acquired Zuari Cement via its takeover of Italcementi in 2016. Between them the two subsidiaries operate four integrated plants, three grinding plants and one terminal in Central and Southern India. Altogether the company says it has a total cement production capacity of 14Mt/yr. Gulbarga Cement, meanwhile, is a long running project via Zuari Cement to build a new integrated plant at Gulbarga in Karnataka. As of mid-2021 at least the company was still finalising planning and permitting requirements.

HCI’s income fell by 3% year-on-year to US$275m in the financial year to the end of March 2023 from US$282m in the same period that ended in 2022. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped by 39% to US$35.4m from US$58.2m, its lowest figure since at least its 2017 financial year. The company blamed this on higher fuel prices, although it has been trying to offset this by optimising its fuel and power mix. Unfortunately, it was not able to pass these costs on to its customers through price rises due to competition and new cement plants being commissioned in its market areas. Its revenue and profits improved somewhat in the quarter to July 2023. Recent financial data on Zuari Cement appears to be unavailable, possibly in part due to the company changing the dates of its financial year in 2020. However, it reported revenue of US$249m in its 2021 financial year, a broadly comparable figure to HCI’s. When asked during the company’s earnings call in July 2023, HCI’s managing director Joydeep Mukherjee did confirm that the company was looking at a potential merger with Zuari Cement. However, the company was waiting for the right time before it would consider actually doing it.

The Indian cement market has been consolidating in recent years. Companies have been increasing their production capacity, competition has been intensifying and the spike in fuel prices in 2022 battered profits. Adani Group’s acquisition of Holcim’s businesses in 2022 has probably been the most visible example of this trend towards mergers and acquisitions. It follows UltraTech Cement’s acquisition of Jaiprakash Associates in 2017. Heidelberg Materials has been steadily selling off bits and pieces of its cement business since the mid 2010s but at a slower pace than Holcim. Selected sales have occurred in Italy, Spain, Georgia, Ukraine and various countries in Africa, but the biggest was the sale of its US West region to Martin Marietta Materials for US$2.3bn in 2021. It reinforced this process with its ‘Beyond 2020’ strategy with the stated aim to simplify its country portfolio and prioritise its strongest market positions. A large-scale divestment of its operations in India would certainly fit with this plan. Whether the current reporting is accurate or not, Heidelberg Materials’ intentions for its Indian operations are certainly worth keeping an eye on.

India: The Hindu newspaper has reported that Adani Cement and UltraTech Cement may submit offers for Heidelberg Materials’ Indian business. This follows the news that parent company Heidelberg Materials has reportedly entered into talks with JSW Cement over the possible sale of the business. It consists of cement plants in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana, in addition to a cement terminal and four grinding plants across India.

Global Cement reported on 4 October 2023 that Heidelberg Materials’ Indian subsidiary HeidelbergCement India had said it was ‘unaware’ of any discussions between its parent company and JSW Cement.

India: A 25-year-old man died after becoming trapped in a belt conveyor at a cement plant in Madhya Pradesh’s Satna District. The Free Press Journal newspaper has reported that the man had been working alone in the plant’s packing plant at the time of the disaster.

Multiple producers, including Birla Corporation, Century Cement, Jaypee Cements and Prism Cement, operate integrated cement plants in Satna.

India: Birla Corporation plans to increase its cement production capacity to 25Mt/yr by the end of the 2026 financial year from 20Mt/yr at present. It intends to do this by upgrading its 3.9Mt/yr Mukutban plant in Maharashtra, installing a second grinding unit at Maihar in Madhya Pradesh as well as building new grinding plants, according to the Times of India newspaper.

Birla Corporation chair Harsh V Lodha said "With the commissioning of Mukutban, we have virtually ring-fenced our core market of Central India, which we can service seamlessly from our six plants, namely Maihar, Satna, Kundangunj, Raebareli, Chanderia and now, Mukutban. The strategic location of these plants and standardisation of product quality allows us to interchange source of supplies to maximise realisation and serviceability for our customers." He made the comments at the company’s annual general meeting.