Indian Autogas Company Limited (IACL), a Chennai-based company engaged in trading of auto liquefied petroleum gas (ALPG), is planning to raise Rs 750 crore from private equity partners to fund its proposed expansion of setting up over 1,000 company-owned ALPG dispensing stations across five states by 2013. The expansion envisages an investment of Rs 1,500 crore.
“We have already arranged funds to the tune of Rs 786 crore through internal accruals and from promoters. This would be sufficient for going ahead with our expansion over the next two years. We will be raising the rest from private equity partners,” SM Anthony Thomas, chief executive of IACL, said here on Friday.
Thomas said the company, which currently has 27 dispensing stations in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, would be setting up 565 in Tamil Nadu, 261 in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra, and 195 in Kerala. “The proposed expansion will take our total sales volumes to 25,000 tonne per month by 2013 from the present 1,000 tonne,” he added.
He said there were over 2 million LPG-operated cars already running on the Indian roads. However, while the country needs 5,000 ALPG dispensing stations to cater to these vehicles, there are only 640 at present. “Automobile makers are rolling out close to 900,000 four-wheelers every year, of which one-third are LPG-converted. As a latent entrant in the industry, we see a huge growth potential in this,” he added.
