The Hindu Business Line : Finolex Ind to invest in captive power plant

Construction of breakwater at Ratnagiri and investment in captive power plant are the projects that the Pune-based Finolex Industries has earmarked for the current financial year.

Speaking on the sidelines of the company's annual general meeting, Mr P.P. Chhabria, Chairman, said the 43-MW, coal-based captive power plant at Ratnagiri would be completed by end-2007.

He said the company plans to construct breakwater near the existing jetty at Ratnagiri.

He said the company wants to make the jetty an all-weather port, resulting in savings in inventory cost of the raw material stock incurred during the monsoon season.

He said the investment for these projects would be about Rs 300 crore.

Mr Chhabria said the company is exploring possibilities of using the vacant land in its pipes facility as a special economic zone.

He, however, said that about eight acres of land has been given to the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation for road-widening purposes.

Resin sector

He added that the expansion of the PVC resin capacity has been completed during the last fiscal. He said that the demand for PVC resin in the domestic market was more than the supply by almost three lakh tonnes per annum.

Mr Chhabria said the company has signed a letter of intent with I.M. Skaugen ASA (IMS), Norway, for undertaking a study for viability and cost-effectiveness of the LNG supply chain intended to be set up in India.

Addressing the shareholders, he said the board of directors have recommended a 15 per cent dividend and an additional silver jubilee dividend at 15 per cent aggregating to a 30 per cent dividend for the financial year ended March 31, 2006.

The total amount of dividend outgo would be Rs 42.43 crore, he added.