The Kalyani Group's flagship company Bharat Forge is planning to make a big foray into the power sector with an investment of up to Rs 50,000 crore (Rs 500 billion) and a targeted generation capacity of up to 10,000 MW, over the next ten years.
According to industry sources, the company plans to set up power plants in Gujarat, Maharashtra, coastal Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
"The group plans to diversify into other capital goods segment to de-risk itself from relying only on the auto components business. It has identified power sector as a priority area and is looking at generating 10,000 MW of power in the next ten years," a source said.
With each mega watt requiring an investment of about Rs 5 crore (Rs 50 million), Bharat Forge's plans could entail an investment of Rs 50,000 crore, the source added.
When contacted, Bharat Forge chairman and managing director Baba Kalyani said the country's power generation capacity would have to be increased to nearly 800,000 MW by 2031-32 to sustain an 8 to 10 per cent economic growth over the next couple of decades.
"Bharat Forge's initiatives in the power sector are geared to help India achieve this. We are making significant investments to address some of the key constraints that the country faces in enhancing power generation rapidly," he said, but did not comment on specifics.
Source, however, said while the company's power plants could be largely thermal, there could also be some hydro plants.
