Cement major JSW Cement is increasing installed capacities and moving fast towards becoming a green cement producer and a preferred partner in the construction sector.
JSW Cement, a part of the US$ 13 billion JSW Group, is one of India’s fastest growing cement companies and India’s largest green cement company. It is fast paving way to emerge as a leader in the construction sector, contributing to national projects and strengthening the nation’s infrastructure.
The company is engaged in the manufacturing of cement, clinker and related products, and is one of India’s top five cement companies with a wide portfolio of diverse products and an installed production capacity of 14 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). It has its manufacturing units in Vijayanagar in Karnataka, Nandyal in Andhra Pradesh, Salboni in West Bengal, Jaipur in Odisha, Dolvi in Maharashtra, as well as a clinker plant in Fujairah, UAE. It had acquired Shiva Cement in 2017.
The company has consistently been increasing its revenue and maintaining a strong financial position, despite the onset of the COVID-19-induced pandemic, and remains well positioned to contribute towards AtmaNirbhar Bharat through its world-class cement products. It is positioning itself closer to being listed on the Indian bourses as it moves towards an initial public offering (IPO) towards the end of CY2022. In its quest to be ranked among India’s top five cement players in India and its focus on increasing share of premium products, the Company is expanding its domestic cement manufacturing capacity. With this, it is set to realise its objective of becoming a 25 MTPA producing cement company by 2023.
Notably, within a span of four years, it has more than doubled its manufacturing capacity from 6 MTPA in 2019 to 14 MTPA currently. The cement major plans to augment its capacity mostly through a combination of setting up brownfield and greenfield projects and through inorganic growth opportunities. Currently, it is in the process of adding two cement plants of 5 MTPA each in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
Attracting strategic investors
The company is partnering with new investors to accelerate growth and has begun diluting minority private equity stakes to select investors to accelerate its manufacturing capacity. In December 2021, State Bank of India picked up stake as a strategic investor through the private equity route, done through compulsorily convertible preference shares linked to its future business performance and valuation during IPO.
Prior to this, it raised Rs 1,600 crore from two global private equity investors – Apollo Global Management Inc. and Synergy Metals Investment Holding Limited through a structured private equity deal. Apart from receiving strategic capital to finance growth, these investments are bringing with them deep validation and brand trust. Financing its growth and expansion strategy also positions the company well for its forthcoming IPO.
Geographical diversification
The company has a strong business model with deep market presence in western, eastern and southern parts of India. It has established a reputation of having delivered superior quality products to some of India’s largest and prestigious infrastructural projects in the southern and western regions of the country. With a presence in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, and Goa, it has gained a foothold in the relative markets. The cement company draws its key strengths from the Group’s well-established track record in project execution and cost management.
On the path of being a low-cost producer
The company’s state-of-the-art facilities and technological advancements are helping it expand to new markets and target newer customer segments. The acquisition of Shiva Cement’s clinker and grinding units in Orissa will act as a hub to service its manufacturing facilities across the eastern regions of India. It will provide a strategic advantage to service the needs of its customers in the eastern region and strengthen its leadership position as a green cement producer. The acquisition is targeted at turning the company into a low-cost producer of cement per tonne.
Further, it has also commenced a capex plan at the group level – that of expanding its grinding units at Dolvi, Maharashtra, and Nandayal, Andhra Pradesh. Another grinding unit is being added at Salem, Tamil Nadu. When commissioned, the expansion will help provide clinker to its manufacturing units at Salboni, West Bengal and Jajpur, Orissa at competitive rates, thus bringing down its cost curve.
Captive limestone mines
A significant benefit to the cement company is its ability to procure limestone from captive mines at Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh, with proven reserves of 134 million tonnes. It has acquired limestone mining rights in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat. Two years ago, it acquired new milestones in Kutch (125 MT) and Nagpur (205 MT). It has another 300 MT limestone reserve at Fujairah plant, UAE. It also has an agreement with steel players for procuring slag at bulk rates.
Locational advantage
The Company enjoys strategic locational advantage – that of being in close proximity to raw material sources and modes of transport. A majority of its raw materials are manufactured inhouse, and in close proximity to the manufacturing facilities, which gives it greater control over quality and consistency during the manufacturing process. Its target markets of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa and Goa are located adjacent to its manufacturing units. Cement being a capital-intensive industry, the locational advantage positively impacts its profitability.
Improving operating efficiency
The Company’s operating efficiency is improving on a consistent basis, largely driven by the sale of portland slag cement and grounded granulated blast furnace slag in southern and western India. The move is likely to result in lower consumption of raw material, power and fuel per tonne of cement. Further, its manufacturing facilities being in close proximity to sources of procuring raw material and its addressable markets also leads to reduction in freight cost. As a result, JSW Cement reported higher EBITDA per tonne of Rs 811 in FY2020 from Rs 700 in the two preceding years. This was facilitated by an increased sale of blended cement and the high-margin ground granulated blast furnace slag. Going forward, driven by improving realisation and receding input prices, the Company is likely to report higher EBITDA per tonne.
Building a greener planet
Strengthened with innovative and sustainable technology, the company is living its vision of being India’s top green cement producer. It has set a strategic roadmap towards achieving best-in-class energy efficiency in production. The company forayed into construction chemicals with the launch of a unique green product range. It has set up a 0.3 million tonne facility at Bellary in Karnataka. It also entered the ready-mix concrete (RMC) market with its first commercial unit in Chembur, Mumbai. This is a part of its larger strategy to increase customer base and offer integrated building material bouquet of offerings comprising cement, construction chemicals and steel with concrete. It maintains a unique focus on green building materials, which positions it as one of India’s leading manufacturers of green ‘sustainable’ cement. It is set to launch its unique eco-friendly concrete for use in commercial construction projects and expand its RMC business in southern and western India.
Growing demand
The demand for cement is set to increase in India owing to the growth in housing, infrastructure, industrial projects. Rise in affordable housing is also set to create rising demand for affordable housing units. Further, as rural housing recovers due to better Kharif season and improved food grain production, demand will further increase.
Benefiting from India’s infrastructure push
The growth potential in the Company is driven largely by the government’s push for large infrastructure projects and a boom in housing construction. India presents an exciting construction and infrastructure story as goes about significantly increasing its allocation for capital expenditure to support its investment cycle. The Government maintains a continued focus on infrastructure and construction sector with higher budgetary allocation year-on-year. During Union Budget 2022-23, Finance Minister allotted ?48,000 crore for housing projects under the affordable housing scheme, further boosting the prospects of cement companies.
The Government is working on upgrading the road length of 1,25,000 km under the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) in the next five years. The NIP has expanded to 7,400 projects from the previous 6,835 projects, paving the way for increased demand for cement.
Key risks
However, JSW Cement’s lower capacity utilisation and limited portfolio diversification is a key worry. Also, the substantial capacity expansion planned exposes the company to risks related to project execution. Further, being in the commodity sector, the company is highly susceptible to volatility in input cost and realisation and also to cyclicality in the cement sector. It is also exposed to volatility in input prices for key components including freight, fuel, power and raw material, which has the capability to impact its Operating Profitability Margin.
UltraTech Cement Limited, an Aditya Birla Group company, plans to expand its electric vehicle fleet in logistics operations to more than 600 EV trucks by December 2026, strengthening its green transport initiatives.
The company has signed service agreements with leading EV prime mover manufacturers, including Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, IPLTech, Energy in Motion and Sany, along with their subsidiaries and logistics partners, for deploying electric trucks.
The expanded fleet will transport around five million MT of clinker and other key materials annually across Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Odisha. Once operational, the fleet is expected to reduce annual CO₂ emissions by over 1,17,000 tonnes and replace nearly 39 million litres of diesel consumption.
K C Jhanwar, Managing Director, UltraTech Cement Limited, said the company is extending sustainability beyond its manufacturing plants by adopting greener logistics solutions and decarbonising its value chain.
UltraTech has been among the early adopters of sustainable transport in the cement sector, introducing CNG trucks in 2021 and electric trucks in 2024. The company currently operates more than 850 trucks under its green logistics programme, including CNG and electric vehicles.
With a grey cement capacity exceeding 200 MTPA in India, UltraTech is integrating electrification across its logistics network, covering mine-to-plant movement and inter-plant transportation of clinker and other materials.
The e-truck fleet will be used to transport five million MT of clinker and other key materials with potential of over 1,17,000 tonnes of net annual CO₂ reduction, displacing the equivalent of 39 million litres of diesel per year.
Mumbai
UltraTech Cement Limited, an Aditya Birla Group company and the world’s largest cement company by sales volume and capacity outside China, has announced that it will scale up its electric vehicle fleet in its logistics operations to 600+ EV trucks by December 2026.
UltraTech has signed service contracts with leading EV prime mover manufacturers including Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, IPLTech, Energy in Motion and Sany, along with their subsidiaries and other third-party logistics providers, to deploy EV trucks.
The total fleet of 600+ EV trucks will transport about five million MT of clinker and other key materials per annum across Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Odisha. Once fully operational, this fleet of over 600 EV trucks will enable a net annual CO₂ reduction of more than 1,17,000 tonnes, displacing the equivalent of 39 million litres of diesel per year.
K C Jhanwar, Managing Director, UltraTech Cement Limited, said, “UltraTech is expanding sustainability beyond its plants by adopting greener logistics solutions. This large-scale transition to green logistics underscores our focus on decarbonising every link of our value chain and supports our commitment to achieving Net Zero.”
UltraTech has been a pioneer in advancing sustainable transport in the cement sector, being the first cement company to deploy heavy-duty electric trucks for long-haul transport of clinker and other materials at scale. The company was among the first in India to introduce green logistics, deploying CNG trucks in 2021 and electric trucks in 2024. UltraTech currently operates 850+ trucks as part of its green logistics operations, including CNG and electric trucks.
UltraTech, with a grey cement capacity of over 200 MTPA in India, operates one of the country’s most complex logistics networks. Its electrification strategy covers the entire supply chain—from mine-to-plant movement to inter-plant transport of clinker and other key materials.
The $ 10 billion UltraTech, the cement flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group, has a total Grey Cement capacity of 205.5 MTPA and White Cement/Putty capacity of 3.2 MTPA. It is a signatory to the GCCA Climate Ambition 2050 and has committed to the Net Zero Concrete roadmap announced by GCCA.
CarbonStrong has raised Rs 125 million (125 mn) to scale a low carbon cement technology and build commercial production capacity. The startup was founded in 2022 by Harsh Jain and Vikramaditya Singh and has moved from customer trials to plans for industrial supply. The company said its material replaces up to 50 per cent of cement in concrete while reducing costs and improving durability.
CarbonStrong states the product is around 30 per cent cheaper than cement and compatible with existing concrete plants, reducing the need for new equipment and operational disruption. Trials and paid pilots have been conducted in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai with demonstration projects involving ready-mix firms and precast manufacturers. Compatibility with current workflows forms a central part of the commercial strategy, aiming to ease adoption by builders and contractors.
The funding will support construction of a facility with capacity of up to 100,000 tonnes (100,000 t) a year over the next two years to supply early customers commercially. The firm is also developing materials from steel slag, copper slag and mine tailings to expand its feedstock base, while noting the technical challenge of homogenising different waste streams. Recognition by HCL ClimaForce in 2026 and by the Avaana-Startup India-NITI Aayog AIM Grand Challenge in 2025 has underscored progress.
Industry adoption remains the principal test and will require consistent material performance, supply reliability and competitive economics. CarbonStrong projects the Indian market for cement substitutes could reach Rs 250 billion (250 bn) by 2030 and has set an ambition to produce 10 million tonnes a year by 2035 (10 mn t), a target far above its near term capacity. Moving from pilots to production demands capital, manufacturing discipline and customers willing to specify the material beyond demonstrations. The recent Rs 125 million raise is intended to fund the next phase of scale and to demonstrate that industrial waste can become a dependable input for lower carbon construction.
