KMML eyes raising titanium dioxide capacity to 1 lakh MT

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd (KMML), the most profitable public sector manufacturing company in the state, is said to be planning to expand its production capacity of titanium dioxide (TiO2).

According to reliable sources, the company has medium to long-term plans to expand the TiO2 capacity from 40,000 metric tonne (MT) to 60,000 MT per annum and further to 1,00,000 MT.

“While the project benefits from management’s experience, and moreover the standardised and automated process available in the company, the project is exposed to implementation risk pending sanction from the Government of Kerala,” a rating agency report pointed out.

FY24 profit falls 31 pc to Rs59cr

KMML is undoubtedly the jewel of the manufacturing sector among the state’s public sector undertakings (PSUs), and the reason is obvious – it is the most reliable entity in terms of profitability.

During the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) too, KMML is said to have earned a net profit of Rs58.55 crore, though way below the net profit the company logged for the previous year, at Rs85.04 crore, reflecting a year on year (YoY) reduction of 31.15 per cent.

This is despite the fact that the operating income during the period inched up from Rs952.82 crore to Rs961.16 crore as of March end, 2024.

Most state public sector undertakings (PSUs) are expected to announce their financial results with a significant delay, a practice that means many of their results rarely come into the public eye.

However, a few entities, which can be counted on one hand, such as Kerala State Electricity Board Ltd (KSEBL), Kerala Financial Corporation (KFC), etc have published their Q4 FY24 financial results so far.

KMML debt

KMML owes Rs305 crore to banks as of March end, 2024, with State Bank of India (SBI) being the largest creditor, having an exposure of Rs135 crore.

While exposure of ICICI Bank and Axis Bank is Rs50 crore each, that of Union Bank of India (UBI) is at Rs40 crore and South Indian Bank’s (SIB) at Rs30 crore.

Always leader

KMML continues to retain the leading market position in the titanium dioxide (TiO2) industry, aided by longstanding industry presence and established and diverse customer bases.

KMML’s operations comprise mining, mineral separation and manufacturing TiO2 and titanium sponge (TSP). The company has been awarded four blocks of beach sand in Kollam (Kerala) for mining, thus enabling it to have assured raw material availability.

Diverse product line

Apart from producing rutile-grade TiO2 pigment for various types of industries, it also produces other products such as ilmenite, rutile, zircon, sillimanite and synthetic rutile.

The customer base includes reputed players in these industries. Established market position, secured mining sources and healthy relationship with various stakeholders are expected to benefit the business risk profile over the medium term.