HeidelbergCement outlines plans to raise Indian capacity

HeidelbergCement is expecting to take both organic and inorganic routes to increase capacity to 20Mta from 12Mta in India, according to The Hindu.

"We are looking for cement companies with a capacity ranging from 5-10Mta," said J N Cooper, managing director of HeidelbergCement’s Indian operations. “We are in talks with cement firms that do not want to get into the National Company Law Tribunal. But we are unable to give more details.”

Regarding pending projects, he said the company is awaiting approvals on a 3Mta project in Gujarat while another 5Mta plant in Kalburgi has been put on the backburner for the time being.

Elsewhere, an INR500m debottlenecking project is in progress at HeidelbergCement India Ltd’s plants, which is expected to increase capacity by 0.5Mta by 2021.

Zuari Cement, also part of HeidelbergCement, is constructing a 22MW waste heat recovery unit in Yerraguntla, Andhra Pradesh, at an investment of INR2bn (US$27.8m). Sitapuram Power Ltd, which owns a 43MW power plant, may also be merged with Zuari Cement.