KOLKATA: Leading speciality steel and wire rope maker Usha Martin Ltd has planned a major capacity expansion entailing an outlay of Rs 464 crore.
P Bhattacharya, managing director, said, the company intends to increase its steel production capacity to over half a million tonne. The expansion proposal involves backward integration in coal mines in order to enable cost reduction along with an increase in value-added steel and steel production capacity, he said, adding, “These projects are moving on schedule and will be completed by September 2008.”
According to Bhattacharya, the company had acquired land and a building in Houston, US, during 2005-06 for setting up a wire rope manufacturing facility. This will become operational by end-October.
The company completed successful acquisition and integration of the wire and wire rope plant from JCT Ltd at Hoshiarpur in Punjab last fiscal.
For the financial year ended March 31, 2006, gross sales of Usha Martin, excluding its subsidiaries, registered a growth of 18.02% at Rs 401.51 crore from Rs 340.18 crore the previous year. “Profit before tax rose to Rs 31.88 crore from Rs 17.22 crore, registering a growth of 85.13% and the profit after tax increased 35.23% to Rs 20.38 crore from Rs 15.07 crore,” Bhattacharya informed. The Usha Martin board is learnt to have recommended a dividend of 55% on the equity shares of the company for 2005-2006.
The company expects an increase in demand and improvement in domestic and overseas realisation in the near future, Bhattacharya added.
Roping in the bucks
For 2005-06, the company’s sales grew 18.02% to Rs 401.51 crore
Profit after tax surged 35.23% to Rs 20.38 crore
The board is learnt to have recommended a dividend of 55% for the year
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