
Consolidation in cement to continue, expects 7-8% industry growth in FY26: Dalmia Bharat
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
Sector consolidation in the cement industry by the big players is expected to continue as the leading companies are likely to enhance their capacity share to more than 60 per cent in the next two years, said the Dalmia Bharat leadership.Moreover, Dalmia Cement expects a bounce back in growth to 7-8 per cent for the cement sector in FY26, which witnessed a subdued cement demand growth of around 5 per cent last year amidst the general elections and erratic rains, according to the latest annual report of India's fourth-largest cement manufacturer."We believe that the demand growth will bounce back to 7-8 per cent Y-o-Y in FY26, driven by healthy demand from all key drivers- housing, infrastructure building and private investments. The year is also expected to benefit with stronger pricing and a focus on cost savings," said its Managing Director Gautam Dalmia and Managing Director and CEO Puneet Yadu Dalmia Over the pace of sectoral consolidation, they said it has increased during the last three years, and the capacity share of the top four companies has grown considerably from approximately 48 per cent in 2021-22 to nearly 58 per cent in 2024-25."Within this, in FY25 alone, we witnessed 52 million tonnes of capacity changing hands," they said, addressing their shareholders.However, the overall installed cement capacity, over the last two decades, the industry has grown at a CAGR of 5-6 per cent."During the next couple of years, the supply is expected to grow at 7-8% CAGR, which could possibly keep the sector capacity utilisation at its current levels. Within this, the industry leaders will continue to expand at a faster pace, and are thus expected to enhance their capacity share to more than 60 per cent in the next two years," they said.The industry's installed capacity is estimated to reach approximately 670 million tonnes (MT) by the end of FY25, supported by the commissioning of around 33-35 MT of new capacity during the year.Dalmia Bharat, which achieved a cement capacity of 49.5 MTPA under Phase 1, has an ambition to increase it to 75 MTPA by FY28 and a long-term target of 110-130 MTPA in Phase II, which will be done through a mix of "organic and inorganic" capacity addition."Our Phase II expansion strategy will further reinforce our position as a pan-India pure-play cement player, placing us favourably on track to achieve our long term target of 110-130 MTPA," they said adding "The journey ahead will be a mix of organic and inorganic capacity addition with more focus on planned and systematic organic growth."As part of Phase II expansion, Dalmia Bharat has announced plans to invest Rs 3,520 crore over the next two years and add 3 MTPA cement capacity each in Pune and Belgaum."In FY25, we added 4.9 MnT of cement capacity through a combination of greenfield and brownfield expansions, while maintaining a Net Debt/EBITDA ratio of 0.3x," they said.Moreover, the Indian cement sector was also facing lower sales realisation due to weakening prices, which had impacted the earnings of several listed companies.However, according to Dalmias, the trend is reversing now."We also witnessed considerable price weakness through the year in FY25, across our key operating regions, a trend which we now see reversing," they said.According to an ICRA report, in March 2025, the average cement prices grew by 3 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 350 per 50 kg bag.In FY25, cement prices declined by 7 per cent Y-o-Y (year-on-year) to Rs 340 per bag. In FY2024, the average prices stood at Rs 365 per bag, over Rs 375 per bag in FY2023, said the ICRA report.In FY25, despite a 2 per cent volume growth on a Y-o-Y basis, Dalmia Bharat's overall revenue declined by 4.8 per cent to Rs 13,980 crore.Dalmia Cement is among the lowest total-cost cement producers in the country and plans to further reduce its costs over the next two years, they added."To further reduce our costs by Rs 150-200 per tonne over the next two years, we are implementing various strategies, including increasing the use of renewable energy, improving heat and power efficiency, and optimising and digitalising our supply chain. In the ongoing fiscal year, we will see many of these efficiency gains flowing in," they said.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time of India
32 minutes ago
- Time of India
Long-pending central govt's infra projects in Belagavi back on track
Belagavi: Several long-pending central govt's infrastructure projects in and around Belagavi are finally gaining momentum after years of delay, primarily due to land acquisition hurdles. The breakthrough comes with the combined efforts of DC Mohammad Roshan and Belagavi MP Jagadish Shettar , who took these stalled projects as a top priority. Key among them is the much-awaited Belagavi-Dharwad railway line via Kittur, a 73-km project sanctioned in 2019 during the tenure of former MP and MoS for railways, the late Suresh Angadi. Despite funding from the Centre, the project was held up for years due to land-related issues. However, DC Roshan recently announced that land acquisition is now complete, and the work is expected to commence shortly. The Halaga-Macche bypass highway, a vital route connecting Pune-Bengaluru NH-4 and Belagavi-Goa national highway, sanctioned in 2009, also faced prolonged delay due to legal land disputes. With the district administration actively mediating and convincing landowners, the impasse has been resolved, and construction is underway. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Use an AI Writing Tool That Actually Understands Your Voice Grammarly Install Now Undo Another major infrastructure project, the Belagavi Ring Road was sanctioned in 2018. The Rs 3,800 crore project to be executed in three phases, received Rs 1,622 crore for the first phase of 34 km. DC Roshan recently confirmed that 80% of the land acquisition is now complete. This ambitious project, sanctioned under the Bharatmala project, will help resolve the traffic congestion in Belagavi city. "Most of these projects were delayed despite being sanctioned, because of land-related issues. After I became MP, I prioritised these issues, met Union ministers, held review meetings with officials, and visited the sites. Today, we are seeing the results. I expect the required land to be fully acquired in the next 2-3 months and the tender process to begin within 5-6 months," said MP Jagadish Shettar. He credited DC Mohammad Roshan for playing a vital role in resolving bureaucratic and on-ground challenges related to land acquisition. In addition, Shettar informed that land acquisition for Belagavi-Hunagund-Raichur highway, a Rs 1,452 crore project, has also reached near completion. He further assured that the new terminal at Belagavi airport will be ready by March 2026, marking a step toward upgrading the facility to international standards.


Time of India
34 minutes ago
- Time of India
Mining industry seeks Rs 15,000 per kWh subsidy for electric trucks
The domestic mining industry has sought a Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per kWh subsidy on electric Heavy Earth Moving Machinery (HEMM) to encourage their use. According to a report by the Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI), the upfront costs of electric trucks is a major entry barrier to their adoption. 'Electric trucks and other HEMMs are currently priced at nearly three times (3x) that of their diesel counterparts. Such price disparity discourages potential buyers,' a FIMI report said. The industry body report also recommended a 5% Goods and Services Tax rate on retrofit kits used to convert diesel trucks to electric. 'Retrofit kits currently do not have a dedicated classification. Instead, the individual components of these kits are taxed separately often at rates exceeding 18% which undermines the economic viability of retrofitting,' the report said.
&w=3840&q=100)

Business Standard
37 minutes ago
- Business Standard
TA Associates exits AU Small Finance Bank; sells 1.26% stake for ₹714 cr
Private equity firm TA Associates on Tuesday exited AU Small Finance Bank by selling its entire 1.26 per cent stake in the company for Rs 714 crore through an open market transaction. According to the bulk deal data available on the BSE, US-based TA Associates through its arm TA FDI Investors sold 93.90 lakh shares, amounting to a 1.26 per cent stake in Jaipur-based AU Small Finance Bank (AU SFB). The shares were disposed of at an average price of Rs 760.07 apiece, taking the deal value to Rs 713.78 crore. Details of the buyers of AU SFB's shares could not be ascertained on the BSE. Shares of AU Small Finance Bank fell 0.93 per cent to close at Rs 764.70 apiece on the BSE. In a separate block deal on the BSE, Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) sold 1.25 lakh shares of Bajaj Finserv for Rs 25 crore through an open market transaction. The shares were offloaded at an average price of Rs 1,983.8 apiece, taking the deal value to Rs 24.80 crore. These shares were acquired by Paris-based BNP Paribas through its affiliate BNP Paribas Financial Markets at the same price. The scrip of Bajaj Finserv slipped 0.92 per cent to settle at Rs 1998.35 apiece on the BSE.