Responding to reporters’ questions during a press conference in Chennai on Tuesday, he said that the group was examining warehousing opportunities but had not taken a final decision.
Asked whether the company has plans to develop its existing landholdings or acquire new land for warehousing, Vijay Sankar said, “It’s still early days.” He declined to disclose details on the scale, investment or timeline of any potential project.
Meanwhile, Sanmar Group, which is known for forming long standing joint ventures, saw yet another milestone. Sanmar Engineering, a synergistic group of joint venture partnerships between Sanmar Group and US-based corporations Flowserve, BS&B Safety Systems, Crane Company, and Emerson, will complete 50 years on 1 July.
“Sanmar Engineering’s long-standing partnerships with the US companies had facilitated technology transfer, localisation and manufacturing in India over the past five decades,” Vijay Sankar said.
Sanmar Engineering said it was expanding manufacturing capacity across its engineering subsidiaries to support demand from both established process industries and emerging sectors.
Among the key initiatives, Xomox Sanmar is increasing annual valve manufacturing capacity at its Viralimalai facility in Tamil Nadu from 80,000 to 150,000 valves.
Flowserve Sanmar has commissioned the first phase of a new manufacturing facility to manufacture seal support systems for industrial pumps. Anderson Greenwood Crosby Sanmar is strengthening its testing infrastructure for safety and pressure-relief products.
B Visweswaran, Managing Director, Sanmar Engineering, said that the group’s engineering businesses continued to manufacture critical industrial products for sectors such as oil and gas, petrochemicals, chemicals, fertilisers, pharmaceuticals and power.
The businesses had achieved high levels of localisation with minimal import content and served both domestic customers and export markets through the group’s long-standing joint venture partners in the United States, he said.
“Our import content is actually very, very low,” Narayanan Sethuramon, vice-chairman, Sanmar Matrix Metals, said.
In addition, the group had built a strong domestic supplier ecosystem for its engineering businesses. The products manufactured in India were supplied not only to domestic customers but also to the group’s joint venture partners and their customers in global markets, strengthening India’s role as a manufacturing base for high-technology engineering products, he added.
The company also identified green hydrogen, battery energy storage systems (BESS), defence and the space sector as emerging growth opportunities alongside its traditional industrial markets.
“There are new opportunities in green hydrogen, battery storage systems, defence and the space sector,” Visweswaran said.
The group’s engineering businesses continued to cater to traditional industries while preparing for demand from new sectors, he added.
The company remained optimistic about India’s long-term manufacturing prospects despite geopolitical uncertainties, Vijay Sankar said.