About Ambuja Cements Ltd

[Dhananjay]

1981
- The Company was Incorporated on 20th October as Ambuja Cements Pvt.Ltd. It was jointly promoted by Gujarat Industrial InvestmentCorporation Ltd. (GIIC) and N.S. Sekhsaria and his associates Vinod K.Neotia and Suresh Mulani for setting up a cement project in the jointsector. The Company was converted into a public limited company on19th March 1983 and its name was changed to Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd. on 19th May 1983.

- The Company's object is to manufacture cement.

- The Company adopted the latest dry process precalcination technologyincorporating five stage preheater for the main pyro processing systemof the cement plant. For grinding the raw material the Companyundertook to instal the latest air swept roller mills of polysiusdesign which were extremely energy efficient.

- A computerised process control system with field instruments suppliedby Larsen & Tourbo was also being installed to give consistently highquality cement with maximum productivity.

- In addition electronic packing machines were being obtained fromHaver & Boecker West Germany and reverse air baghouse equipment fromZurn Industries USA.

- The company entered into an agreement with Krupp Polysius AG (KP)West Germany for supply of plant equipment and service for theproject KP agreed to supply raw material and coal grinding verticalroller mills homogenising and kiln feed burning cooling and coalfiring equipment and pneumatic transport pumps.

- KP have a collaboration agreement with Buckau Wolf India Ltd. whoare supplying the balance items of the main plant as per KP design.The scope of the agreement with KP provides for complete engineering ofthe plant technical documentation and information and supervision oferection and commissioning of the project.

1983

- All shares subscribed for by signatories to the Memorandum ofAssociation promoters etc.

1985

- A letter of intent was received to increase the installed capacityfrom 7 00 000 tonnes to 14 00 000 tonnes per annum.

- 146 44 500 No. of equity shares issued at par out of which thefollowing shares were reserved for firm allotment: 38 24 448 shares toGIIC; 21 20 000 shares to overseas companies of non-resident Indianpromoters on repatriation basis and 15 50 052 shares to N.S. Sekhsaria Vinod K. Neotia and their associates.

- Out of the balance 71 50 000 shares 28 60 000 shares to non-residentIndians with repatriation rights and 8 75 500 shares to employees(including Indian working directors)/workers and business associates ofthe Company were reserved for preferential allotment. The remaining34 14 500 shares were offered for public subscription during November.Out of the oversubscription 33 50 000 shares were retained andallotted to the public.

1986

- 20 00 000 No. of equity shares issued at par of which 2 00 000 sharesallotted to private promoters and their associates and the balance of18 00 000 shares offered and allotted to the equity shareholders asrights in prop. 1:1.

1988

- Production declined marginally to 8 02 301 tonnes due to heavy rainsin July-August 1989 coupled with flash floods on 16th July.

1989

- The 12.6 MW diesel generating sets which were imported during 1988-89were commissioned during the year.

1990

- Necessary approvals were received for setting up another cement plantwith 1 million tonne capacity per annum at village Suli Tehsil Arki District Solan of Himachal Pradesh.

1991

- In order to meet long-term working capital requirements the Companyissued 10 00 000 - 17.5% secured redeemable non-convertible debentureson private placement basis. These debentures would be redeemed inthree equal annual instalments commencing at the end of the 6th yearfrom the date of issue of the debentures at a prem. of 5% of the facevalue of the debentures.

- In order to part finance its expansion projects the Company proposedto issue 52 62 500 No. of equity shares of Rs.10 each at a prem. ofRs.190 per share. Out of the total issue 50 00 000 shares were to beoffered to the existing equity shareholders of the Company as rights inthe prop. of 1:4 and the balance of 2 62 500 shares were to be offeredto the employees directors and the business associates of the company.

- In order to part finance its expansion projects the Company alsoproposed to issue 52 62 500 - 17.5% secured redeemable non-convertibledebentures aggregating to Rs.210.50 crores. Out of the total issue 50 00 000 debentures were to be offered to the equity shareholders ofthe Company on rights basis in the prop. of 1 debenture for every 4equity shares held and the balance of 2 62 500 debentures were to beoffered to the employees directors and business associates of theCompany.

- Each non-convertible debenture would be attached with a detachablewarrant and the holder of one such warrant would be entitled to applyfor and be allotted one equity share of the Company at a price ofRs.300 per equity share (Rs.10 towards face value and Rs.290 as prem.).


- The warrant holders at the time of exercising their right/option tosubscribe for their equity shares entitlement would have further optioneither to pay a price of Rs.300 per share of the Company or tosurrender the equivalent number of debentures as subscription forallotment of equity shares.

- GACL Finance Ltd. Concrete Investments Ltd. and Indo NipponSpecial Cements Ltd. are the subsidiaries of the company.

1992

- The Company undertook bulk cement transportation by sea to themajor markets of Mumbai Surat and other deficit zones on the WestCoast. Transportation was to be carried out by three speciallydesigned ships. The units bulk terminal at Kodinar and one at NewMumbai was completed and work on the third terminal near Surat began.

1993

- 51 60 165 rights equity shares allotted at a prem. of Rs.190 pershare (49 66 815 shares prop. 1:4; 90 850 shares to employees and1 02 500 shares to Associates); 1 10 281 shares of Rs.10 each allottedat a prem. of Rs.215 per share on exercise of warrants by warrantholders.

1994

- The Company's muller location 1.5 million tonne cement project withclinkeriation facility at site in H.P and grinding facility both atSuli & Ropar in Punjab was commissioned. Land was acquired atSahranpur to serve as another site for grinding cement.

- The Company also undertook to set up a new unit `Gajambuja Cement'with an installed capacity of 9.4 lakh tonnes at the existingpremises. The kiln was fired on 1st March 1993 and the unit producedits first batch of clinker on 4th March 1993.

- The Company undertook to set up the third 1 million tonne cementplant at Ambujanagar. Orders for plant and machinery were placed andthe plant was expected to be commissioned by December 1996. This willincrease the company's total cement capacity to 4.5 million tonnes.

- 45 65 044 shares allotted on conversion of warrants. 12 21 994allotted on conversion of aurobonds. 375 rights shares kept inabeyance allotted. 3 02 19 749 bonus shares issued in prop. 1:110 00 000 shares allotted to IFC Washington. 4 404 rights shares keptin abeyance allotted.

1995

- The Company proposed to install one more cement mill at Himachalplant.

- 11 251 829 shares allotted on optional conversion of FCCBs. 7 724Rights shares kept in abeyance allotted. 7 350 shares allotted onconversion of tradeable warrants.

1996

- Two more ships `Ambuja Keerti' and `Ambuja Shakti' were added to theFleet. The Company has submitted a proposal to revive Modi CementsLtd. to IDBI during the year.

- Another 19724 No. of equity shares allotted on conversion ofwarrants.

1997

- 100 000 000-10% non-convertible redeemable pref. shares of Rs. 10each allotted and 30 000 000-12.75% non-convertible redeemable pref.shares of Rs. 10 each redeemed.

- Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd's (GACL) Kodinar plant is set to commencecommercial production with an enhanced capacity by mid-April.

- Gujarat Ambuja Cement Ltd. has offered to set up a multi-crore cementplant in Jammu and Kashmir.

- Gujarat Ambuja Cement Ltd. (GACL) was set up in 1981 as a jointsector company promoted by Narottam Sekhsaria and Gujarat IndustrialInvestment Company (GIIC). Its cement plant which was commissioned in1985 was set up in technical collaboration with Krupp Polysius Germany Bakau Wolf and Fuller KCP.

- Gujarat Ambuja Cement Ltd. (GACL) is setting up two new units with acapacity of 1.5 m.t. each through its subsidiaries.

- The company has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with thepromoters of Modi Cement to take control of the sick company and hasprepared a revival proposal to be submitted to the Board for Industrialand Financial Reconstruction (BIFR).

1998

- Gujarat Ambuja Cements to set up a $20 million clinker Grinding unitin Sri Lanka.

1999

- Gujarat Ambuja is proposing to set up a greenfield cement plant witha six million tonne capacity in phases in Andhra Pradesh.

- Gujarat Ambuja is setting up a 0.50 MT bulk terminal and a packagingfacility at Tuticorin for Rs 16 crore to increase its presence in thesouth especially Tamil Nadu.

- Maratha Cements Ltd a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gujarat AmbujaCements is to be amalgamated with the latter.

- The company has proposed a bonus shares in the ratio of 1:1.

2000

- Cement giants Larsen & Tubro (L&T) and Gujarat Ambuja Cements haveentered a unique agreement to reduce transportation costs indespatching bulk cement in Gujarat.

- The Company has entered the fray for setting up a slag cement unitnear the integrated steel complex of Jindal Vijayanagar Steel Ltd. inKarnataka.

- The Company has entered into a contract with a Soinhalese firm Mahaveli Marine Cement to supply around 2.5 lakh tonnes of cementannually.

- Eastern Ambuja Cement a 92-per cent subsidiary of Gujarat AmbujaCement is in talks with Orissa-based Shiva Cement for a possible jointventure.

- The Company has kickstarted its operations in Sri Lanka with thesetting up of a cement terminal in the port of Galle in the south ofthe island country.

- Ambuja Cement Eastern a subsidiary of Gujarat Ambuja Cements ismaking a preferential allotment of equity to its promoters to mop up Rs30 crore to part-finance its Rs 130-crore expansion project.

- ICRA has downgraded the non-convertible debenture (NCD) programmes ofthe company.

- Fitch India has assigned a rating of Ind AAA to the Rs 50 crore NCDprogramme of the company.

2001

- The Company has completed the issue of FCCBs of about $100 millionissued in the international markets.

- Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd. the fourth largest cement maker in thecountry has closed its issue of secured non-convertible debenturesafter raising the targeted Rs 200 crore.

- Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd is planning to issue fresh equity shareson a prefrential basis to non-promoter groups.

- Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd (GACL) has received Rs 200 crore fromforeign equity investor Warburg Pincus as part of its proposed Rs360-crore investment in the form of equity shares and convertible ants.

- The company will buyback shares worth Rs 50 crore at a maximum shareprice of Rs 170 per share through the open market route it said.Gujarat Ambuja Cements has clocked a 112 per cent rise in net profit atRs 53.23 crore during the first quarter of the financial year 2001-02.

2002

-Commercial production commences at Gujarat Ambuja Cements Maratha Cement Works plant

-Board approves merger of Ambuja Cement Rajasthan with the company

-Mops up Rs 50 cr by issuing non Convertible Debentures (NCD)

-Allots 80 lacs warrants to Affinity Investments an Affiliate of Warburg Pincus Equity Partners L.P

-Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) directs Sebi to examine Guj Ambuja deal for ACC stake

2003

-SEBI finds no violation of Regulation 12 of the SEBI (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulation 1997 by Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd. with regard to the ACC deal

-Raises $80 million through External Commercial Borrowings (ECB)

2004

-BIFR sanctions the rehabilitation scheme for merger of Ambuja Cement Rajasthan with Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd.

-Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd has informed that Shri NP Ghuwalewala has been appointed as the Wholetime Director of the Company at the Board meeting held today on June 28 2004

2008

-Ambuja Cements Ltd has appointed Mr. Naresh Chandra as an additional director.