The depreciation in the rupee will hit cement companies by making imported coal and equipment costlier, Mr Muthiah, President, Cement Manufacturers Association said.
Speaking to newspersons on the sidelines of ‘Green Cementech-2012' organised jointly by the Confederation of Indian Industry and CMA here on Thursday, Mr Muthiah said many cement companies in general and south Indian firms in particular were dependent on imported coal for production. “Apart from this, the cost of import of other materials and equipment required for the industry is also going up,” he said.
Though demand for cement, was improving over the last three to four months, the capacity utilisation of large cement plants was only at 76 per cent, he added.
Many cement plants had stalled expansion projects due to the prevailing economic environment and spiralling input costs, he added.