Adani Enterprise subsidiary raises Rs 6,000 crore loan to set up greenfield copper plant

Kutch Copper Limited (KCL), a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises, said on Sunday that it has raised a debt of Rs 6,071 to set up a copper refinery in Mundra, Gujarat.

The funds will go towards setting up a 0.5 million tons per year (MTPA) copper refining capacity as part of the first phase of the new plant. The total planned capacity is 1 million metric tons in two phases.

The loan was granted by a consortium of banks led by State Bank of India (SBI). Other banks that are part of the consortium include Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, EXIM Bank of India, Indian Bank, Punjab National Bank and Maharashtra Bank, according to a press release from Adani Enterprises.

“Aligned with ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ (Self- reliant India), KCL aims to create production capacity for refined copper, which plays a vital role in promoting countries’ shift towards EVs (electric vehicles) and renewable energies,” Adani Director Vinay Prakash said in the statement.

Prakash said construction on the site is going well and the plant is scheduled to start production in the first half of 2024.

“It will be one of the largest copper refining complexes in the world, with modular ESG performance standards, leveraging the latest technology and digitization,” he said.

KCL was incorporated in March 2021 as a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises, which is incubating new business in the Adani Group.

With this investment, the Adani Group will become the third largest private sector player in the copper market in India. The other two are from the Aditya Birla Group.

Sterlite Copper from Hindalco and Vedanta Group. Hindustan Copper Limited, a public sector company, is another major player.

Last week, the Vedanta Sterlite Cooper was offered for sale. The 0.4 million metric tons per year copper smelter has been closed for just over four years after violent protests by local residents over the alleged pollution it is causing. Vedanta claimed that the plant supplies 40% of India's copper demand.

The demand for copper in the country is expected to increase with the shift to renewable energy and the adoption of electric vehicles. Since the closure of Sterlite Copper, India has become a net importer of the metal. The country had been a net exporter of copper for nearly two decades before that, according to news reports.

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