West Bengal based Keventer Agro, a Rs 400 crore food processing company part of the Rs 1200 crore Keventer Group, is all set to start its Sanand plant by the end of this year. The company is also scouting for a foreign joint venture partner for its export-oriented dairy products project and is likely to sign a deal by April.
"We are working on the financial closure of the project which is funded by a 1:2 debt-equity.We have already purchased the land and the plant can start production by the end of this year," said Mahendra Jalan, chairman, Keventer Agro Ltd.
The food processing plant is coming up over 30 acres of land near the Tata Nano site in Sanand with a net investment of Rs 75 crore. It will process mushrooms, sesame seeds and oil, peanuts among others. Jalan said, the net turnover from the plant would be around Rs 200 crore per year.
The company had signed a memorandum of understanding with the state government during the Vibrant Gujarat Summit in January 2009 and had the land in possession soon after.
Keventer Agro is also likely to tie-up with a foreign partner for its export oriented dairy products project. The plant, however, can come up in Rajasthan as Jalan said "We already have around 50 acres of land there for our Food Park in Alwar".
Keventer has taken up space at the 186 acre Agro Food Park developed by the Rajasthan State Industrial Development and Investment Corporation (RIICO) adjacent to the Matsya industrial area, 15 kilometer from Alwar, in the National Capital Region. The company was earlier in talks with Groupe Danone, the France-based dairy foods company for the project. While Jalan now declined to give out the name of the foreign partner, he said the deal is likely to come through by April.
Keventer Agro Ltd was established in 1986 and it commenced through a franchise agreement with the food and beverage giant Parle to manufacture, package, distribute and market a few of its well-known brands like 'Frooti', 'Appy' and 'Appy Fizz' apple drinks and Bailey packaged drinking water. The company's food export division exports food products such as mango pulp, guava pulp, sesame seeds, and bakery ingredients across the globe.