Singapore-based Indorama Corporation plans to invest up to Rs 1,000 crore within three years in India to set up three manufacturing facilities to produce spandex fibre, used in various applications like stretch denims and sportswear.
The company, which is present in India through its wholly owned subsidiary, Indorama Industries Ltd, has already invested Rs 400 crore for its first plant at Baddi in Himachal Pradesh. Two new units will come up at the same location.
“In the next three years, when all the three plants are completed the investment will reach Rs 1,000 crore,” Indorama Corporation Managing Director, Mr Amit Lohia, told PTI.
The company would fund the expansion process through a mix of debt and equity, he added.
The Baddi plant, which will be commissioned next month, has a capacity of 5,000 tonnes per annum to produce its branded spandex product ‘Inviya’.
With the commercialisation of three plants, our total capacity to produce Inviya will treble to 15,000 tonnes per annum over the next three years,” Mr Lohia added.
The company, which exports polyester yarn to India, is looking to cash in on the high growth of spandex utilisation in the country.
According to the company estimates, the consumption of spandex in India is nearly 6,000-7000 tonnes per annum, all of which is imported.
“Indian market for spandex is currently just around one per cent of the total global market, which is around 6-7 lakh tonnes per annum. Due to such a low base, we expect a high growth in this segment,” Mr Lohia said.
The demand for spandex in India is growing at 15-20 per cent year-on-year.
Indorama Industries, which employs around 270 people in India, is also looking to more than double the workforce in the next three years.
It has already appointed dealers in South and North India and is planning to appoint dealers in Surat and Kolkata to cater to the eastern and western parts of the country.
Indorama Corporation, which has presence in sectors like textiles and petrochemicals, posted $8-billion revenue in 2011.