JSW Group to invest up to $70 billion in next six years, says Parth Jindal

JSW Group plans to utilise a mix of fresh equity, debt, and internal accruals, says Parth Jindal

The JSW Group, led by billionaire Sajjan Jindal, has outlined an ambitious plan to invest up to $70 billion over the next six years. This extensive investment will span various business verticals, including steel, cement, paints, renewable energy, infrastructure, and automobiles, among others.

In an exclusive interview with Moneycontrol, Parth Jindal, Managing Director of JSW Cements and JSW Paints, shared insights into the group's strategic allocation of resources. "Of this, the highest allocation will be towards our energy business," he stated, highlighting the group's focus on expanding its renewable energy portfolio.

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To achieve this, JSW Group plans to utilise a mix of fresh equity, debt, and internal accruals. "We will fund this through a combination of fresh equity, debt, and internal accruals to meet the committed investment target," Parth Jindal explained.

In addition to the planned investments, the JSW Group has also earmarked separate funds for its newly forayed automobile business. "Our investments in the auto business will be over and above this," Jindal added, indicating the group's commitment to bolstering its presence in the automotive sector.

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In March this year, the JSW Group signed a joint venture agreement with China's SAIC Motor-owned MG Motor India to manufacture electric and hybrid vehicles for the Indian market. In the JV, JSW Group currently owns a 35% stake, while the remaining 65% is owned by SAIC, which has 49%,  private equity fund Everstone Capital, and a collective of dealers. Separately, JSW Group is also investing Rs 40,000 crore to establish an integrated EV facility in Odisha.

Riding high on India’s rapidly expanding economy, some of the country's largest conglomerates are eyeing massive investments, betting heavily on emerging sectors such as green energy and semiconductors among others.  The Adani Group which has a presence in infrastructure, power and new energy has outlined investments to the tune of $ 90 billion in the next decade. Likewise, the Tata group too has committed investments up to $90 billion in the coming years as it expands massively into semiconductor and electronics manufacturing.

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Notably, JSW Energy is setting up India’s largest 25-megawatt green hydrogen project in Vijayanagar, Karnataka, for its flagship company JSW Steel Ltd. to manufacture green steel. “The work on the project has started, and we will be commissioned by the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025,” Jindal said. “The company has also received 6.8 thousand tons of capacity per year from the Solar Energy Corp. of India (SECI) under the Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition program,” he added.

“In JSW Energy, we recently raised $600 million from a clutch of marquee global investors. We will continue to invest in growing our renewable energy portfolio,” he said.

Jindal maintained that the group will continue to invest in the paints business. The paint-maker turned profitable at an operating level for the first time in 2023-24 (April-March), with operating margins of over 3%. The company crossed Rs 2,000 crore in revenue during the year and is now targeting revenue of Rs 5,000 crore by FY26. “Despite the competitive intensity, we have continued to grow, and we expect the momentum to keep going up as more efficiencies kick in. We expect our margins to match the industry’s top players,” Jindal said.

"We expect to generate enough cash to meet most of the requirements, but we are open to exploring strategic opportunities for divestment,” Jindal said, adding, “For instance, in the newly listed JSW Infra, where we own more than 85%, we will have to mandatorily divest our stake to comply with SEBI regulations once the lock-in period ends. Likewise, we will explore opportunities in other businesses if the need arises; however, there are no immediate plans to do so.”