The Hindu : Aditya Birla Group's plans

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 11, 2003

Business

Business

Aditya Birla Group's plans

By Our Staff Reporter

BHUBANESWAR MARCH 10. The Aditya Birla group, which has been restructuring its business during the past few years, aims to become a premium conglomerate with clear business focus at all level, relentlessly pursuing value creation, the Chairman of the group, Kumar Mangalam Birla, said here today.

Addressing presspersons, Mr. Birla said the underpinning logic was to push market leadership, economies of scale, productivity gains and operational efficiencies, all covering to create growth in shareholder value.

Mr. Birla, who attended an investors' meet of the group's financial services, said their strategy was to get out of business where they were bit players and strengthen the business where they had clear competencies in order to get to the top of the league.

Stating that the group's dominant strategic theme had been one of consolidation and growth, Mr. Birla said a key characteristic of the growth drive from here would be that the bets would be even larger and bolder than in the past.

About the group's efforts to buy majority shares in National Aluminium Company (Nalco) and the proposal to set up two alumina plants in Orissa, Mr. Birla said as the Nalco privatisation matter was in a limbo at present, the group had kept its options open.

No final decision had been taken so far on setting up the two alumina plants, he said.

The group has plans to set up the Rs. 4,500-crore Utkal Alumina plant at Kashipur and the Rs. 11,000-crore Aditya Aluminium plant at Laxmipur, both in Rayagada district of the State.

While land has already been acquired for the proposed plant at Kashipur, the land acquisition process is yet to begin for the Laxmipur plant, according to company officials.

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