BirlaNu plans to invest up to Rs 1 300 cr eyes acquisitions

New Delhi, Mar 31 (PTI) CK Birla Group home and building material solutions firm BirlaNu Ltd plans to invest up to Rs 1,300 crore in the next three years as part of its strategy to double sales in 3-4 years time, according to top company officials.
     The company, which had recently renamed itself as BirlaNu Ltd from erstwhile HIL Ltd and undertaken a rebranding exercise, is also scouting for acquisition opportunities to fuel its growth, BirlaNu Ltd President Avanti Birla told PTI.
     "We are widening our positioning and going further, in a two-fold manner -- in our own products and we're also looking externally at diversifying, other products (and) potential acquisitions," she said when asked about the future roadmap.
     Asked if any acquisitions are being considered at the moment and how much war chest has been prepared, she said, "It is just part of our expansion...when it comes to the external market, there is no particular number as such right now but we are always looking for opportunities that come to us at the right price."
     Elaborating further, BirlaNu Ltd Managing Director & CEO Akshat Seth said the company has set on a journey to doubling sales in the next three to four years and do it profitably, identifying pipes and construction chemicals to be the real growth engines, besides expecting its global interiors brand Parador to also double during the time period.
     "In order to do this, organic growth is one big lever, but we are evaluating inorganic opportunities...we continue to look for good assets overall to fuel this growth," Seth added.
     Last year, the company acquired Patna-based Crestia Polytech, maker of the Topline brand of pipes and fittings, along with its four other subsidiaries at an enterprise value of Rs 265 crore.
     When asked about the investment required to fulfil the growth ambition of the company, he said, "We believe we will need an investment to the tune of about Rs 1,200 crore to Rs 1,300 crore over the next three years and to achieve the revenue goals."
     In FY24, the company posted a consolidated revenue of Rs 3,375 crore.
     On the expansion plans, Birla said the company, which has 40 per cent of its revenue from outside India, is entering the domestic market in a strong way with the Parador brand and is also entering the US market.
     Seth said, "As far as Parador in India is concerned, we believe the time is right for a product of that quality and that design aesthetic to play a major role in India, and actually building that segment of flooring."
     He further said, "We have just commissioned the expansion of our AAC (autoclaved aerated concrete) block unit in Chennai...and with this expansion, we are now about four lakh cubic meter capacity, and well on our way with the phase three expansion that will happen in the next 12 to 18 months. It will be India's largest single location, AAC block facility."
     The third investment that the company is making is in a new segment in the pipe industry -- Oriented Poly Vinyl Chloride Pipe (O PVC Pipe) which is a major blockbuster product, Seth said.
     "It is supposed to replace the ductile iron-based pipes, which is a Rs 30,000 crore industry. Very few players in India have access to the technology of O PVC. We are now one of them. We have already initiated a greenfield project in Patna, and in six to nine months time, we should be in the market with that product," he said.
     On the rationale behind the recent renaming and rebranding exercise of the flagship firm of the CK Birla Group firm which was founded in 1946, Birla said, "I think the customers around us in the world have really changed. We listened to our customers, and we decided that as they change, we also need to change with them."
     The time had come to rebrand the company, rename it and make it more befitting of its consumers, while still staying true to its legacy, she said, adding, "BirlaNu represents a new age in innovation and resilience".
     "While we stick to our existing product portfolio, we have a lot of new excitement and announcements within our products, and we're diversifying as well into newer products, and we'll go to market in a far more digitally enhanced sort of way," Birla said.
     One of the major players in home and building solutions, BirlaNu's portfolio spans across pipes and fittings, construction chemicals, Aerocon and BirlaNu Putty, alongside brands Charminar and Parador.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)