Hindalco lines up Rs 10,000 Cr Capex

Aluminium major Hindalco has lined up a capital expenditure of Rs 10,000 crore for its green field as well as brown field projects in the current fiscal, Chairman of the company Kumar Mangalam Birla said today.



"We have a capex Rs 10,000 crore for all our projects, both green field as well as brown field, for the current financial year," Birla told shareholders at the company's 53rd annual general meeting here.



All of the company's major strategic expansions in Brazil, South Korea and the US are on track, he said, adding that it has ventured into China with a plant that will initially focus on automotive sheet finishing capabilities.



"This will further solidify our global automotive leadership position. All through the year, at Novelis, strategic investments were made in global recycling facilities in South America, Europe and Germany. These facilities will ensure metal supply and optimisation of overall cost base," he said.



Novelis' investments have been strategically geared to leverage growth opportunities in the emerging markets, to capture the increasing emphasis on light weighting in the automobile industry and recycling in all the four operating regions, he said.



He also informed the shareholders that the Mahan Aluminium Project, Aditya Aluminium Project and Utkal Alumina Refinery were all at an advanced stage of implementation.



He further said the company's balanced portfolio, value added products, operational excellence and aggressive growth strategy has helped it in its positive performance.



"Our performance has been outstanding, both at standalone and consolidated level," he said.



The aluminium business in the country recorded the highest production and the cost pressures were largely neutralised through greater efficiencies, he said.



The copper business attained the highest profitability led by improvement in recovery, better product mix and maximising value from by-products, he pointed out.



Novelis, he said, too reported strong operating results braving global economic headwinds.



The company had reported consolidated net profit of Rs 3,397 crore last fiscal compared to Rs 2,456 crore the year before, while the consolidated revenue stood at Rs 80,821 crore compared to Rs 72,202 crore in the previous year.