Plans a new Rs. 550 crore plant in GujaratUflex to invest Rs. 1,800 crore for further growthLeading flexible packaging company Uflex is investing ₹1,800 crore (about US$ 284 million) to grow its output and add new products as demand for packaging material rises in India amid changing retail patterns. The Noida-headquartered company will invest ₹550 crore in setting up a plant in Sanand, Gujarat, to make packaging materials for liquid products.
RK Jain, Uflex’s group president for corporate finance and accountsAccording to an interview of RK Jain, Uflex’s group president for corporate finance and accounts published in the business magazine Businessworld, Jain said land has been acquired for the plant, which will be operational in April 2017 and will employ about 800 people. “We are now entering the liquid market,” he said.
The Gujarat plant will produce seven billion packs a year for liquid products such as energy drinks, milk and juices, and about 90% of the output will be used for the domestic market. Uflex manufactures both packaging materials and equipment and is a market leader in India in the segment. A big chunk of its supplies goes to the food and beverage industry.
Uflex has manufacturing plants in Noida in Uttar Pradesh, Malanpur in Madhya Pradesh and in Jammu. Overseas plants are located in Dubai, Egypt, Mexico, Poland and North America. Jain said the company is growing its overseas business as well.
“We are becoming an emerging player in the international market. We have a sales network in 140 countries,” he said, adding that the company’s revenues are evenly divided between domestic and overseas markets. The company employs 7,500 people, of whom 6,300 work in India.
No negative impact for Uflex due to Maggi
Uflex, which supplies packing material to Nestle, does not see any negative impact on its revenue growth due to the sales ban on the Maggi instant noodles brand. “Our packaging portfolio is evenly spread out among several top-notch brands and Maggi as a part of our portfolio does not add significantly to our bottom line,” the company said in a statement. “The recent banning of Maggi noodles will have no negative impact on Uflex’s turnover as the company is on a higher growth trajectory both in India and the overseas market.”
