Kesoram Industries Limited, under the B K Birla Group of Companies, plans to invest Rs6 billion during the current fiscal year into the tyre business and to acquire mining land.
“We are planning to invest Rs 600 crore in 2016-17. The investment will be towards cement and tyre business,” Kesoram director and CFO Tridib Kr Das said after the annual general meeting held in Kolkata on July 28.
Executive Vice-Chairperson Manjushree Khaitan headed the meeting as Chairman B K Birla was not attend due to health reasons.
Das said Rs3.5 billion would be towards tyre business out of which Rs3 billion would be for a car radial tyre facility at Balasore. “The 2.9 million car radial facility will be up for commercial production in April and already Rs5 billionhad been infused and another Rs3 billion would be spent this year,” he said.
Another Rs2.5 billion has been reserved to acquire mining land around the company’s cement plant atVasavdatta in Karnataka. The company currently has control of a mine land that would cater for another 20 years.
Demand for cement has not picked up yet but according to analysts bullish days are ahead.
About funding the investment plan, Das said the company was evaluating between raising debt and equity and no firm decision had been taken yet.