Nava Bharat, parent company of Maamba Collieries plans $100 million investment in phased manner
Paloncha based Nava Bharat Ventures Limited (NVBL) which is celebrating its golden jubilee year of its formation is gearing up to invest 100 million US dollars to further its operations, informed the company Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ashwin Devineni.
Established in 1972 as an Indian Ferroalloys manufacturer, the company is now a multinational firm operating in India, South East Asia and Africa. The company successfully completed 50 years in the industry and is aiming further its organic and inorganic growth.
Nava Bharat currently produces over 2,00,000 tons of Ferroalloys each year and operates several power plants. It is working with hundreds of sugarcane farmers to produce and process sugar as well as ethanol, the CEO noted.
In an interaction with the media here he revealed that as part of its efforts to give back to society, the company is also investing in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities by promoting healthcare, education, livelihood and rural development initiatives.
Speaking on the company’s growth so far and future plans he said “Our biggest achievement is that we survived. Many companies have shut down, but we have been growing steadily. Though our strategy looks conservative, we are always on a growth path”
The company has grown organically and now it is a diversified group, with businesses in metals manufacturing, power, mining, agribusiness and healthcare. VBL is primarily a Ferro Alloys Company supported by power generation. Ferro Alloys is doing well and the steel outlook looks good, Devineni noted.
“We are looking at increasing our Ferro Alloys production capacity when we have raw material security. The company is looking for mines in Zambia and will announce once we finalise a deal. In the energy vertical, the company may gradually shift business direction from coal-fired power generation to more sustainable processes”, he said explaining the expansion plans.
To tap growth opportunities further the NVBL plans to invest $ 100 million over the next three years. Apart from Ferro Alloys, the company is making a few calculated investments in the agriculture and healthcare sectors as well.
The company can mobilise required funds for investments through internal accruals and debt. It is listed on both of India’s major stock exchanges – the NSE and the BSE, he added. Nava Bharat which began its Ferro-Silicon production in Andhra Pradesh in 1975 later expanded into sugar production in 1980. It went on to include manganese in its metals portfolio in 1989 and began power generation for self-consumption and sale in 1997.
In 2004 the company’s first wholly-owned international subsidiary was established in Singapore. In 2010, NVBL’s international assets grew to include Maamba Collieries, Zambia’s largest coal mine concessionaire. It led to the development of a 300 MW power plant in Zambia n 2016.
