Shree Cement Ltd (SCL), India’s third largest cement group, has slowed its capital expenditure plans to ₹1,500 crore amid subdued demand conditions, though it remains committed to expanding capacity to 80 million tonnes by 2029.
Managing Director Neeraj Akhoury said during the analysts call that the company intends to “ride the wave” amid the current slowdown and has moderated capex guidance for FY27 to around ₹1,500 crore.
“We are on record saying that we should reach 80 million tons by 2029. But then please understand it’s a dynamic situation. We have slowed down the capex,” said Senior Advisor Ashok Bhandari.
“Even in the last concall of one of our competitors, they have also slowed their aggression. So we will ride the wave as it is. We intend to reach 80 million tons by FY29,” Bhandari said.
Kodla plant commissioned
During the March quarter, SCL commissioned its integrated project at Kodla, Karnataka, with clinker capacity of 3.65 million tonnes and cement capacity of 3.5 million tonnes.
With this, the installed cement production capacity of Shree Cement, including wholly owned subsidiaries, increased to 69.3 million tonnes.
Expansion plans continue
SCL is also setting up a cement mill with capacity of 2.5 million tonnes at Union Cement, UAE, which is expected to be commissioned by September 2026.
Further, Shree Cement is establishing an integrated cement plant in Meghalaya with clinker capacity of 0.95 million tonnes and cement capacity of 0.99 million tonnes.
SCL has also incorporated a wholly owned subsidiary in Mauritius to establish cement blending, storage and packing facilities. The company continues to pursue multiple expansion opportunities at various stages of development despite the near-term slowdown in demand.
RMC business scaling up
SCL is also expanding its ready-mix concrete (RMC) business. The company had 26 operational RMC plants at the end of FY26 and inaugurated 10 additional plants during March 2026, which are currently under commissioning.
With commissioning of these facilities, the total RMC plant count will increase to 36 at the beginning of FY27.
SCL expects to end FY27 with around 50-55 RMC plants while also investing in railway sidings and preliminary work on the Meghalaya project.
Strong balance sheet
According to Bhandari, SCL currently has net cash of around ₹6,400 crore against borrowings of ₹1,500 crore. SCL has largely funded expansion through internal accruals over the last 15 years and intends to continue with the same strategy.
On limestone reserves in Meghalaya, he said the first explored block indicates reserves of around 600 million tonnes in aggregate.