Mukutban plant, new jewel of Birla Corp

Kolkata: Birla Corporation Ltd, the flagship company of the MP Birla Group, has now taken its overall cement capacity to 20 million tonne per annum, with the commissioning of it Mukutban integrated cement plant in Maharashtra. The commissioning of the plant got delayed by a few months, thanks to the pandemic and more particularly thanks to the flight of the migrant workers from the project site.

The company along with its subsidiary, RCCPL together, have 11 cement plants spread in eight locations across the country, with an annual installed capacity of 20 million tonne per annum. The company produces an array of cement products, under the MP Birla Cement brand, suited to the different climatic conditions as well as different consumer segments. The Mukutban plant of RCCPL Private Limited (RCCPL), put up with a total investment of Rs 2744 crore, top company officials claimed, is going to be one of the most advanced cement factories in India, in terms of technology and efficiency parameters. This, incidentally, is the largest greenfield investment by the company in the history of the Group.

India's overall cement production capacity is estimated to be 502 million tonnes per year (MTPA). The cement industry is expected to reach 550-600 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) by the year 2025. India's top ten cement producers are UltraTech Cement Ltd (102.75 MTPA), Ambuja Cements Ltd (29.65 MTPA), ACC Ltd (28.4 MTPA), Shree Cement Ltd (29.30 MTPA), Dalmia Bharat Ltd (26.5 MTPA), Birla Corporation Limited (20 MTPA), India Cements Ltd (15 MTPA), The Ramco Cements Limited (16 MTPA), Orient Cement Ltd (8 MTPA), HeidelbergCement India Ltd (5.4 MTPA).

Significantly, this will be the fourth integrated cement unit of the MP Birla Group and the biggest single line/kiln cement plant in Maharashtra, by capacity. It will be powered by 2 x 20 MW Thermal Captive Power Plant, which is based on Air-Cooled Condenser (ACC) technology to minimize water consumption by 90 per cent. The plant has been built exclusively by MP Birla Cement Perfect Plus brand which shows the faith the management has on the strength of its products and the brand. It would be one of the few cement plants built entirely by Portland Pozzolana Cement which has 30 per cent-35 per cent component of fly ash which is, otherwise, a waste product of thermal power plants. The company has already lined up ambitious plans of making fresh investments for generating renewable energy from multiple sources. At present, renewable energy accounts for about 22 per cent of Birla Corporation's total power consumption. In the 103rd year of operation, driven by the motto of "Heart & Strength", the Mukutban plant is founded on the twin planks of superlative technology & sustainability. Blended cement makes up more than 90 per cent of the company's total cement production, the highest in India. The consumption of slag and fly ash will be scaled up also in the Mukutban plant, benefitting the industrial units at Chandrapur, top officials in the company said.

"It is no mean feat to complete such a large project under such challenging circumstances with major disruptions on account of Covid which led to several logistical challenges, stoppage of work and a flight of labour from the project site on several occasions. Moreover, to achieve 10-million man hours of construction with zero accidents and completion of the entire project without a single major accident or fatality, I am told, is a unique achievement in the cement industry. The Mukutban plant will not only have a major impact on the cement business of the MP Birla Group but will make a meaningful contribution to the improvements of the lives and livelihoods of the people associated with it as well as the communities in the neighbourhood, in keeping with the Group's credo of Heart and Strength," said Harsh V Lodha, Chairman, MP Birla Group.