With plans to expand warehousing capacities, Snowman Logistics has earmarked ₹50 crore to acquire land across the country, even as it bought a 3-acre land parcel in Coimbatore for about ₹4 crore. The company, which has entered into agreements with various firms to transport Covid-19 vaccines, is scouting for similar land facilities across the country.
The cold chain logistic provider will set up a fully-operational warehouse in Coimbatore, which will add another 5,000 pallets capacity (storage space for about 3.5 crore vaccine doses) in the next 4-6 months, sources close to the development said.
“The necessity to increase warehousing capacity arose from the increasing demand from the existing customers demanding more space in new geographies, and with the strong outlook from the cold chain users,” a source said.
The Benguluru-headquartered firm is looking to acquire similar land facilities in Madhya Pradesh (Indore), Uttar Pradesh (Ghaziabad and Kanpur), Maharashtra (Mumbai and Nagpur), Bihar (Patna), and West Bengal (Kolkata).
The company has earmarked close to ₹50 crore for land acquisitions. This is part of the cold chain logistic provider’s plans to reserve a total of 10,000 pallets space across the country.
At present, Snowman has 31 temperature-controlled warehousing facilities across 15 locations in the country with a combined capacity of 1,08,375 pallets and a fleet of about 300 refrigerated trucks. The company is planning to double its pallet capacity to more than 2,00,000 pallets.
When contacted a company spokesperson declined to comment.
Snowman, in which Gateway Distriparks holds a majority 40 per cent stake, has also entered into an agreement with budget carrier SpiceJet for transportation of Covid-19 vaccines for its clients. The logistics company is also in talks to partner with Covid vaccine manufacturers for distribution, once the bulk movement starts, which is expected to begin from April this year.
The company is also in the process of raising up to ₹250 crore through a Qualified Institutional Placement.
Snowman Logistics had posted a net profit of Rs 1.42 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2020, as against a net loss of Rs 3.45 crore recorded during the comparable year-ago period.