Holcim eyeing majority stake in Guj Ambuja

Swiss cement major Holcim, which had raised its stake in Gujarat Ambuja Cement (GACL) to 18.4% from 14.8% last month, said going in for a majority holding in the Indian company was not an impossible proposition over a period of time.

Speaking on the sidelines of Global Logistics Summit, organised by the Indian School of Business (ISB), Thomas Schmidheiny, director of Holcim, who holds 22% equity in the Swiss multinational, said the company would continue to increase its stake in GACL. Taking over its management control, according to him, was not impossible over a period.

Meanwhile, Holcim would continue to look for joint ventures in the Indian cement sector as it is keen on organic growth as well. "We want to follow the market by adding 2 million tonne capacity a year," Schmidheiny said.

He said there were a couple of other things on the company's immediate agenda, like modernising certain elements in the existing manufacturing facilities.