Britannia plans two new plants with Rs500 cr capex

Packaged food maker Britannia Industries Ltd is planning to set up two new units - one near Erode in Tamil Nadu and another near Bengaluru in Karnataka - at an investment of around Rs250 crore, the company's managing director Varun Berry said in Kolkata on Wednesday.

''They are likely to be ready by December,'' he told reporters at a press meet. He said that the food company was currently concentrating on consolidating and scaling up its business at its own plants and at the plants of its 'partners' (which are run with some equity contribution).

BIL, which makes biscuits, rusks and cakes, closed the June quarter with a double-digit profit growth. It has 14 units of its own and around 30 contract manufacturers.

The company is planning a total capital expenditure of Rs500 crore, which would be spent on existing units besides greenfield ones.

The company has a capacity of eight lakh tonnes, which needs to be increased by 80,000 tonnes annually to meet its demand. It has now moved up from its No. 2 position in the biscuit-market, which remains at Rs25,000 crore for players in the organised sector.

BIL clocked a 67-per cent rise in its net profit (consolidated) saying that the company's results were a result of innovation (in packaging and products), revamped distribution, increased rural penetration and enhanced efficiencies.

On a consolidated basis, the company reported a 13-per cent growth in its total income from operations which stood at Rs2,018.60 crore in the quarter ended June 30, 2015, against Rs1,786.99 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. The net profit has increased by 66.9 per cent to Rs.189.66 crore from Rs.113.66 crore.

On a standalone basis too, the company witnessed a 13 per cent rise in its total income from operations which stood at Rs1,847.11 crore against Rs.1,634.23 crore.

The net profit has risen by 55.6 per cent to Rs167.77 crore from Rs.107.81 crore in the period under reference.

Commenting on the results, BIL chairman Nusli Wadia, said at the company's annual general meeting that the company had done 'pretty good' and was poised for a decent performance this fiscal. ''We have been able to increase the market share, revenues and profitability,'' he said.

On the Maggi controversy, Berry he said, ''We have created a crisis management team to deal with any emergency should one arise,'' he said.