Under the direction of billionaire Sajjan Jindal, the JSW Group has unveiled a bold plan to invest as much as $70 billion over the following six years. This massive investment will cover a number of industry sectors, including infrastructure, vehicles, steel, cement, paints, and renewable energy.
Parth Jindal, Managing Director of JSW Cements and JSW Paints, provided rare insights into the group's resource allocation strategy in an interview with Moneycontrol.He said, "Of this, the highest allocation will be towards our energy business," emphasizing the company's intention to increase the portfolio of renewable energy sources.
JSW Group intends to use a combination of new equity, debt, and internal accruals to accomplish this."We will fund this through a combination of fresh equity, debt, and internal accruals to meet the committed investment target," Parth explained.
Apart from the investments that are planned, the JSW Group has set aside specific cash for its just ventured vehicle industry. Jindal continued, "Our investments in the auto business will be over and above this," demonstrating the group's resolve to increase its market share in the automotive industry.
To produce electric and hybrid cars for the Indian market, the JSW Group and MG Motor India, a subsidiary of China's SAIC Motor, inked a joint venture deal in March of this year. Currently, JSW Group holds 35 percent of the JV; SAIC, which controls 49 percent, the private equity firm Everstone Capital, and a group of dealers own the remaining 65 percent. A separate investment of Rs 40,000 crore is being made by JSW Group to develop an integrated electric vehicle factory in Odisha.
Riding high atop India's quickly growing economy, some of the biggest corporations in the nation are eyeing substantial investments, placing significant bets on developing industries like semiconductors and green energy among others. The Adani Group, which is involved in electricity, infrastructure, and new energy, has projected spending of $90 billion over the course of the next ten years. In a similar vein, the Tata group has pledged to spending up to $90 billion over the next several years as it significantly expands into the semiconductor and electronics manufacturing industries.
Notably, JSW Energy is constructing the biggest 25 megawatt green hydrogen facility in India at Vijayanagar, Karnataka, for the purpose of producing green steel for its main business, JSW Steel Ltd. "We will be commissioned by the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025," Jindal declared, adding that the project's development has begun. He said, "The firm has also obtained 6.8 thousand tons of capacity annually under the Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition initiative from the Solar Energy Corp. of India (SECI).
We just raised $600 million for JSW Energy from a number of well-known international investors. We'll keep making investments to expand our portfolio of renewable energy sources," he declared.
According to Jindal, the organization would keep making investments in the paint industry. In 2023–24 (April–March), the paint manufacturer achieved its first operational profit, with operating margins above 3%. The company's revenue goal for FY26 is to reach Rs 5,000 crore after surpassing Rs 2,000 crore in revenue throughout the year.
"We have expanded in spite of the fierce competition, and we anticipate that this trend will continue as additional efficiencies become operational. Our margins should be competitive with the best in the business. We anticipate being able to meet the majority of the requirements with cash flow, but we are willing to look into strategic opportunities for divestment. For example, we will have to legally sell our stake in the recently listed JSW Infra, in which we own over 85%, in order to comply with SEBI regulations after the lock-in period expires. If the necessity arises, we will also look at potential in other industries, although we don't currently have any plans to do so," stated Jindal.
