Economy & Market

Unending Hunger for Concentration

Published

10 years ago

July 4, 2016

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In India itself, seven major M&A deals have been announced or completed in the last three years in the cement sector involving a total capacity of 41 million tonne (10 per cent of total installed capacity) and a value of US $4.3 billion. No, this is not an original discovery by us, we are only quoting from a recent report by a reputed investment banking group. If the scale and urgency of this phenomenon sounds rather unusual, it may be worth rationalising that the desire to consolidate has always been driven by the ultimate goal of acquiring more and more pricing power. This is what we term as the unending hunger for concentration.

In one of our editorial analyses last year titled?Shortcut to growing Bigger?, we had critiqued this trend in the context of the great big global cement merger of our times, between Lafarge and Holcim. We had also questioned the reality of value creation through such global mergers for local commodities like cement. We had also said that it is not necessary that the biggest companies thrive, but it is the ?fittest? (a la Charles Darwin?) who will prosper. In addition, our submission was that such massive mergers routinely chase mirages of value creation through blindsided cost-reduction measures, and therefore, while being dubiously beneficial to shareholders, these are certainly value destroying for other stakeholders like customers and employees. Read this in the contemporary context of sustainable management philosophies, and you will know that this does not make for a story with a happy ending.

Why are we revisiting these postulates now? Because, the Lafarge-Holcim merger has now been consummated, the merged entity has been listed in Zurich and Paris stock exchanges since July 2015, and meanwhile, another global merger involving Heidelberg and Italcementi has been approved – and it is time to take stock of these stocks! Both Market Capitalisation and Equity Price of Lafarge Holcim have nosedived during this period, with the shares losing 38 per cent in the last one year.

Markets are unforgiving examiners of companies? performances and even factor in the expected outcomes of management actions being planned. So, leave alone the employees and customers, even the shareholders have given an unequivocal thumbs-down to this merger. What this essentially means is that there is a confidence deficit in the ambitious cost-reduction plans announced by the management during merger. And, in case you hadn?t noticed, the merger has not caused even a kilogram of concentration in India, since the whole of Lafarge India?s business is now having to be divested in a controlled manner to one of the smaller players.

Even as all this dust is settling down on the famous merger of mergers, the proposed amalgamation of Heidelberg and Italcementi has been given the go-ahead. As of now, we have no idea what this will achieve, apart from rewriting the global top ten list of cement companies, which to my mind is immaterial, given that the markets are very very national/local. The lesson for all stakeholders is to watch these moves very carefully, and not get carried away by hyperbole of any kind.

There is however, one positive development is supporting the appetite for consolidation in the cement sector in India. The government has gone the extra mile by amending the MMDR Act to give space to cement mergers by allowing transfer of mines obtained through non-auction routes, and make some extra money on the side. We hope this helps the cement players in their unending pursuit of consolidation, but we also hope that in the end, all of this somehow, also helps the customers get better products and services. Man lives on Hope.

Sumit Banerjee
Chairman, Editorial Advisory Board

Concrete

Wonder Cement appoints Mahesh Singh as VP Corporate Brand Communication

Published

6 days ago

October 9, 2026

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Singh brings 20+ years of brand and marketing experience, and will lead integrated corporate brand communication initiatives at Wonder Cement

New Delhi

Wonder Cement, a leading cement manufacturer, has appointed Mahesh Singh as Vice President – Corporate Brand Communication. In his new role, he will oversee corporate brand strategy and communication, including digital and performance marketing, public relations, trade, events, exhibitions, sports and experiential marketing.

Singh brings over two decades of experience across marketing and communications, with roles spanning the automotive industry, agencies and entrepreneurship. He spent more than a decade with Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, working across integrated communication, media, digital, retail and consumer engagement. His stint also included helping build the company’s digital marketing capabilities.

He moved to dentsu X India as Vice President – Strategy & Planning, working across categories such as automotive, auto components, electric vehicles, FMCG, consumer electronics, BFSI, apparel and brand consulting. His responsibilities included media and marketing strategy, product launches, content, performance marketing and consumer activations.

Singh subsequently took an entrepreneurial route with Radiant Brands before joining Shriram Ltd (SPR Autotech) as Head – Marketing & Communications. There, his remit included brand and corporate strategy, communications, PR and ORM, retail identity, loyalty programmes and events.

At Wonder Cement, Singh will be responsible for bringing together the company’s corporate brand communication initiatives across digital, performance marketing, PR, trade, sports and experiential platforms. The role will focus on creating an integrated approach to communication across consumers, trade partners and other key stakeholders.

The appointment brings to Wonder Cement a marketer whose career has spanned the brand, agency and entrepreneurial sides of the communications ecosystem.

Wonder Cement, part of the RK Group, is a cement manufacturer with roots in Rajasthan and a focus on quality, trust and transparency. The company has grown to six manufacturing plants, and a cement capacity of 21.5 MTPA. With more than 2,000 employees and a network of over 5,000 dealers, its operations span manufacturing, distribution and customer engagement, with a focus on consistent product quality and efficient execution.

Concrete

JSW Cement commissions additional 1 MTPA grinding unit at Nagaur

Published

1 week ago

October 8, 2026

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With this commissioning, JSW Cement’s total cement grinding capacity has increased to 25.10 MTPA,
Mumbai

JSW Cement, one of India’s leading green cement producers and part of the diversified JSW Group, today announced the successful commissioning of an additional 1.00 MTPA cement grinding unit at Nagaur, Rajasthan. The commissioning marks another significant milestone in the Company’s growth strategy.

With this commissioning, JSW Cement’s total cement grinding capacity has increased to 25.10 MTPA, while its total clinker manufacturing capacity, including clinker capacity at its joint venture, JSW Cement FZC, stands at 9.74 MTPA.

JSW Cement had commenced operations in North India in March 2026 with the Nagaur Integrated Plant, comprising a 3.30 MTPA clinkerisation unit and 2.50 MTPA cement grinding unit. With the commissioning of the additional 1.00 MTPA cement grinding unit, the plant’s total cement grinding capacity has increased to 3.50 MTPA, enhancing the company’s ability to cater to the growing cement demand across Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and the National Capital Region (NCR). The expansion has been funded through a strategic mix of equity and long-term debt.

During the quarter ended 30th September 2026, JSW Cement has also commissioned the Alternate Fuel Handling System and the Waste Heat Recovery system (WHRS) at the Nagaur Integrated Plant.

Nilesh Narwekar, CEO, JSW Cement, said: “The commissioning of additional 1.00 MTPA grinding capacity at Nagaur is a key strategic priority for us and will accelerate JSW Cement’s expansion into North India. We look forward to servicing the growing needs of the region and contributing to the economic growth of Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and the NCR area. I am delighted to share that the company has commissioned this grinding unit within the expected timeline, showcasing our project execution capabilities. Further, the Alternate Fuel Handling System and the Waste Heat Recovery system (WHRS) are expected to substantially reduce our production costs going forward.”

Concrete

UltraTech becomes first Indian cement firm to cross 2 GW green energy

Published

1 week ago

October 7, 2026

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UltraTech Cement has crossed 2 GW of captive green energy capacity, with renewables and waste heat recovery meeting 48 per cent of its power needs.

Mumbai

UltraTech Cement Limited has surpassed 2 GW of installed green energy capacity for captive use, becoming the first cement company in India to achieve the milestone. The Aditya Birla Group company commissioned 116.55 MW of wind capacity at its Inter-State Transmission System-connected wind-solar hybrid project in Barmer, Rajasthan, along with 10 MW of Waste Heat Recovery System capacity at Sarlanagar Cement Works in Karnataka.

With these additions, UltraTech’s cumulative installed green energy capacity has reached 2,024 MW. This includes 1,580 MW of renewable energy capacity and 444 MW of waste heat recovery capacity, together meeting around 48 per cent of the company’s current power requirements.

The company said the milestone reflects the progress of its long-term energy transition strategy. In FY27 so far, nearly one-third of UltraTech’s 76 manufacturing units in India have maintained green energy utilisation above 50 per cent of their electricity requirements, while five units have crossed 95 per cent.

K C Jhanwar, Managing Director, UltraTech Cement Limited, said, “Crossing the 2 GW green energy milestone is the result of a strategy we have pursued consistently over the past decade. Cement is an energy-intensive, hard-to-abate sector, and showing that reliability and growth can go hand in hand with a rapid shift to green energy sets a benchmark for the industry. With nearly half of our power needs now met through green energy, we are significantly less exposed to fossil fuel supply constraints and power price volatility. As we scale up renewables, waste heat recovery and battery storage across our operations, we are building an energy foundation for stable, long-term growth.”

UltraTech commissioned 430 MW of green energy capacity in FY26 and continues to expand its renewable energy and waste heat recovery portfolio.

The company is also progressively integrating Battery Energy Storage Systems across its operations to improve renewable energy utilisation and supply reliability.

In 2025, UltraTech operationalised what it described as India’s first on-site hybrid round-the-clock renewable energy project at Sewagram Cement Works in Gujarat. The project combines solar, wind and battery storage.

As part of its decarbonisation strategy, UltraTech said it has not invested in new captive thermal power capacity for either greenfield projects or brownfield expansions at its integrated units for more than a decade.

The company said its expanding green energy portfolio is helping reduce dependence on conventional grid electricity and fossil fuel-based power, while lowering exposure to fluctuations in coal and electricity prices.

UltraTech aims to increase green energy’s share in its total power mix to 85 per cent by 2030. As a member of RE100, it has also committed to meeting 100 per cent of its electricity requirement through renewable sources by 2050.

UltraTech Cement, the cement flagship of the Aditya Birla Group, has a total grey cement capacity of 210.1 MTPA and white cement and putty capacity of 3.5 MTPA. The company is also a signatory to the GCCA Climate Ambition 2050 and has committed to the GCCA Net Zero Concrete roadmap.