Dabur on a global expansion spree

By Nachiket Kelkar and Vivin Mathew, CNBC-TV18

FMCG company Dabur is rapidly building up its presence outside India. It is opening a new packing plant in Pakistan, which will eventually become a manufacturing facility and another production unit is coming up in UAE later this year.

Dabur India is on a expansion drive outside India. It already has production facilities in Bangladesh, Nepal, Sharjah, Egypt and Nigeria and it is all set to foray into Pakistan. Dabur International will open a packing facility in Pakistan possibly in October. The unit will initially pack the products shipped in from facilities in UAE, but a source said the plan is to eventually turn it into a fully functional manufacturing unit.

Dabur products are already available in Pakistan. Sales account for about Rs 15 crore, which are expected to rise further once the new facility gets going. Dabur's planned subsidiary Naturelle LLC will open later this year in Ras Al-Khaimah in the UAE . Dabur has invested about Rs 40 crore in the unit and will produce personal care products like hair oils, shampoos, hair creams and toothpaste. The products will be supplied to Jordan, Syria, Iraq and North Africa.

Dabur's total international sales are about Rs 400 crore or about 16% of its total sales and sources has said that company's target is 20% sales by 2010.

This information is source-based and has not been provided to the stock exchanges.