Finolex to expand capacity with Rs 90-cr investment

Finolex Industries, the manufacturer of poly vinyl chloride (PVC) pipe, plans to raise the manufacturing capacity of the PVC pipes and fittings plants to foray into water business. The Pune-based company will invest Rs 90 crore over the three years for increasing the capacity by 40% to 3,20,000 tonnes to cater to the water supply and water equipment market.
 
Prakash Chhabria, Executive Chairman of Finolex Industries, said, “We are firming up plans to enter the water business. We are talking to a couple of consultants and a final plan would be formalised in 12-18 months. As an organisation we are keen on ensuring that the available water should reach the end user in the most efficient manner. We consider it our primary responsibility to ensure that the pipeline not only brings life into his crop but also brings him prosperity.’
 
Finolex is planning to launch new technology products related to water. The company is spending over Rs 16 crore for this venture.
 
While the PVC resins business currently accounts for about one third of the turnover, the share of the pipes business is expected to grow year on year. At present, the company has three manufacturing plants - in Pune and Ratnagiri in Maharashtra and Masar, near Vadodara, in Gujarat - with the total capacity of 2,06,000 tonnes.
 
Its non-pipe business will touch Rs 1,500 crore in the next two years. Finolex’s agri and non-agri business ratio is 70:30 which will remain same in the future. The company which clocked a turnover of Rs 2,453 crore in 2013-14 is expecting to grow at a CAGR of 15 to 20 per cent over the next five years, which will see its turnover cross $ 1 billion.