Stuck projects hit CCCL orders

Consolidated Construction Consortium Ltd (CCCL), a Chennai-based developer, is in a bit of quandary.

Construction orders worth Rs1,200 crore it bagged for various infrastructure projects are stuck as the projects itself are not moving for one reason or the other.

These orders would remain non-moving unless impediments to their execution are removed, chief financial officer TR Seetharaman said.

Among these are the Chennai and Kolkata metro rail projects, an airport in Goa and some power plants.

“It could take about 4-5 quarters for things to improve at the macro level. We can’t say when we can start booking revenues from these projects,” Seetharaman said.

He said as far as the metro projects and airport are concerned, the primary issue is land acquisition whereas some of its power developer clients have not yet tied up funds for their projects.

Land acquisition delays hobble projects across various infrastructure sectors.

Infrastructure accounts for nearly half of CCCL’s order book of Rs6,200 crore with the rest coming from residential, industrial and commercial projects.

CCCL’s metro orders are worth Rs700-800 crore and the Goa airport project about Rs200 crore.

The company will by the end of the fiscal complete its Rs1,100 crore Chennai airport project, its single biggest.

In a July 29 report on the company’s first-quarter results, Angel Broking’s Shailesh Kanani said the company’s order inflows are showing signs of revival, but “the critical execution leg is dragging the company’s performance.”

On CCCL’s 300 acre food processing special economic zone at Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, Seetharaman said there are currently five companies, including a honey manufacturer and a tea packager, that have agreed to open shop over 20 acre. “There are enquiries but they are not converting into agreements. Companies are concerned about DTC (direct taxes code),” he said.