Mumbai: JSW Cement Ltd is on track to expand capacity to 20 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) from the current 12.5 mtpa, and launch an initial public offering (IPO) sometime after the 2019 general election, managing director Parth Jindal said on Monday.
At a press conference to announce the commencement of manufacturing of a “heavy duty” variety of cement at the company’s Dolvi plant in Maharashtra, Jindal said that the capital raised through the IPO will be used to expand capacity further as the company aims to be one of the top three cement manufacturers in the country.
On the rationale behind waiting for the 2019 elections, Jindal said by then the company would have scaled up enough to be considered a large cement player.
Jindal said the expectation of a large uptick in demand continues to keep the valuation of cement assets high and hence the firm is not aggressively pursuing any acquisition. What it continues to pursue aggressively, however, is limestone mines.
The strength of JSW Group is execution and hence the firm intends to scale up to 20 mtpa organically, Jindal said, adding the group is also planning to launch a paint manufacturing subsidiary so as to be able to cater to the entire construction value chain.
“We would like JSW to be a one-stop solution for home building. With synergies in distribution and logistics, we would be launching JSW Paints sometime next year with the aim of being a disruptor in this space,” Jindal added.