Vinod Mathew

Ahmedabad , July 13

THE Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) is putting up a 100 tonnes per day (tpd) powder plant alongside its existing Mother Dairy plant in Gandhinagar at a cost of Rs 58 crore.

The 13-month turnkey project has been awarded to L&T, with the Rs 50-crore plant facility being put up by L&T-Niro and the Rs 7.5-crore civil work going to L&T ECC.

The plant will cater entirely to Amul's foray into the white and brown beverages segment under the Shakti label, whose sales are soon slated to touch 1,000 tonnes per month. GCMMF had purchased 25 acres of land adjoining its existing Mother Dairy plant at a cost of Rs 3 crore for the plant.

The Rs 200-crore Mother Dairy plant, set up in 1994 with a milk processing capacity of 10 lakh litres per day (lpd), had grown to 18 lpd last year. With the 10 lakh lpd additional capacity, which is set to be ready by 2005-end, the Mother Dairy plant would become the largest milk powder production plant in Asia.

Mr S K Bansal, General Manager, GCMMF, in charge of the Mother Dairy plant, said the Gujarat farmers were expected to produce 10 lakh litres more milk for commercial use by 2005-end. GCMMF's decision to raise the capacity of the Mother Dairy plant from 18 lakh lpd to 28 lakh lpd was in line with the growth in surplus milk, he said.

"This will translate into 100 tonnes per day of enhanced powder capacity, taking it up from 60 tpd as on date to 160 tpd by the time the new plant gets commissioned. It will also mean a 15 per cent reduction in the conversion cost from liquid milk to powder. The Gandhinagar plant's turnover of Rs 600 crore in 2003-04 is slated to go up to Rs 750 crore during the current fiscal," Mr Bansal said.

GCMMF is looking at the long haul as far as the white and brown beverages segment is concerned. It, is planning a 4.5 MW captive power plant to energise its beverages foray.

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