Balrampur Chini aims to maintain growth traction; acquisition on radar

Balrampur Chini Mills Ltd (BCML) expects its growth momentum to remain robust, fueled by increased crushing and higher yield in the current sugar season October 2023-September 2024, a top company official said.

In addition to the organic growth it is achieving, the company is also exploring suitable “acquisition opportunities” in the inorganic space.

“I don’t want to stall our growth trajectory. We need to evaluate various opportunities to ensure sustained healthy growth given the favourable government policies. We expect our performance is going to be only better in the years to come,” Avantika Saraogi, Promoter and Business Lead (New Initiatives), told PTI, without divulging specific targets.

BCML’s 2022-23 topline stood at Rs 4,728 crore. H1FY’24 (April-September 23) revenue jumped 33 per cent YoY to Rs 2,929 crore.

Saraogi who played a pivotal role in BCML’s success, expressed confidence in the company’s future performance.

The city-based sugar major, which operates ten sugar factories in Uttar Pradesh with an aggregate sugarcane crushing capacity exceeding 80,000 TCD, remains open to acquisitions for inorganic growth while maintaining organic growth in its existing mills.

She stated that early indications from the current crushing season suggest a yield exceeding 10 per cent due to favourable weather conditions, various technological interventions for farmers implemented by BCML, and improved pest management. The company processed 10.3 crore quintals of sugarcane during the previous sugar season.

Her optimism stems from the preponement of the E20 (20 per cent ethanol blend in petrol) target to 2025-26, a move that will ensure a balanced sugar market and foster stable returns for the sugar industry.

However, any external factors including an abrupt increase in the state-advised price (SAP) for sugarcane by the Uttar Pradesh government could put pressure on the industry, cautioned Haidergarh Sugar Mill CGM & head operations Vinod Kumar Yadav.

Yadav urged the state government to consider the industry’s viability before contemplating any increase in the cane support price.

Trendlyne Forecaster estimates revenue of Balrampur Chini Mills Ltd to range between Rs 5,516 crore and Rs 5,824 crore in FY24 and between Rs 6,100 crore and Rs 6,639 crore in FY25.

While sugar remains BCML’s core focus, ethanol production is being ramped up by 50 per cent to 33 crore litres this year. Sugar contributes 66 per cent to the company’s revenue, with ethanol accounting for the remaining nearly 33 per cent.