Hindalco Industries, part of the Aditya Birla Group, is looking to save ₹800 crore this fiscal by pre-paying high-cost debt.

Responding to shareholders questions at the company's 58th annual general meeting here on Wednesday, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman, Hindalco Industries, said the company has so far pre-paid ₹7,815 crore and will pay another ₹1,100 crore this month to cut debt further.

The move will reduce finance cost by ₹800 crore this fiscal and efforts will be taken to bring down debt further next fiscal, he added.

The broad theme going ahead will be to deleverage balance sheet and focus on downstream products, Birla said.

The company is also studying the export market for alumina with capacity utilisation ramping at the Utkal Alumina Refinery, he said.

In India, he said aluminium demand is expected to improve as the government has taken several measures, including stepping up public sector outlays for infrastructure, focus on ease of doing business and speeding up of green clearances.

The Reserve Bank of India focus on NPA resolution is aimed at igniting a virtuous cycle of growth and it is a matter of time before private sector investments pick up, he added.

The abiding sense is one of optimism and confidence with the nation slated to grow at 7.5 per cent to 8 per cent, he added.

With the coal linkage signed last fiscal, the company’s coal security improved to over 60 per cent of the annual requirement of the domestic aluminium business. On prospects of Novelis, he said the thrust on sustainability and recycled aluminium has widened the scope of recycled scrap for reuse.

It has developed close loop recycling systems with end-users to improve efficiencies and Novelis has now increased the input of recycled material from 51 per cent in FY-16 to 55 per cent in FY-17.

Novelis has refinanced $4.3 billion of its long term debt and reduced annual interest expense by $79 million. Auto products share in the company increased from 15 per cent in FY-16 to 18 per cent in FY-17.

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