Bajaj Elec expands high masts capacity

Bajaj Electricals has doubled its capacity to manufacture high masts and octagonal poles at its Ranjangaon plant.

The plant can now make 3,000 high masts per year as against 1,500 per year earlier. The capacity to manufacture octagonal poles has been increased to to 30,000 from 15,000 per year.

Shekhar Bajaj, chairman and managing director, Bajaj Electricals, said the expansion entailed an investment of Rs 15 crore. This is the company's second high mast manufacturing plant at Ranjangaon. The first one was commissioned in 2001.

The first plant, which also has a galvanising line, makes 1,500 high masts and and 15,000 octagonal poles per year. Bajaj said the company will also expand its galvanising capacity to 50,000 tonne from 30,000 tonne and further increase the high masts and poles capacity shortly.

"We have drawn up Rs 30 crore plan for this. The expansion will enable us to launch newer high-end products,'" Bajaj said. He said the company is bullish on the infrastructure sector.

The company supplies masts of 11-60 m height. It has a market share of over 65 per cent in this business.

It had recently supplied complete turnkey solutions comprising high masts and lights to the Chennai Port and Guwahati Stadium. Bajaj said Reliance Petroleum is a major customer and has so far acquired 152 high masts for its refinery at Jamnagar.

"We see opportunity in urban projects being undertaken by various municipal corporations. Using of pole-hoisted signages by petrol stations is also a major boost for our business. There is huge scope in the transmission line towers (TLTs) and other lattice structures business," Bajaj said.

He said that the company earns about a third of its revenues from the engineering and projects business. "This division brought in Rs 250 crore out of our total sales worth Rs 850 crore in 2005-06. Out of this, Rs 148 crore was contributed by the Ranjangaon facility," Bajaj said.