ITC Ltd., one of India’s leading conglomerates, announced plans to invest Rs. 20,000 crores in the medium term across various businesses. Chairman and Managing Director Sanjiv Puri shared this information with shareholders during the company’s 113th annual general meeting.
“Despite the headwinds, the investments made across all our businesses to enhance structural competitiveness and build an enterprise of the future position the company well to leverage emerging opportunities in the market,” Puri said. He did not elaborate further on the investment plans.
Puri highlighted ongoing investments in two manufacturing facilities and an IT and knowledge center. He also emphasized the company’s growth in the hospitality sector, stating, “The company has opened 32 hotels in the last 24 months, taking the total to nearly 140 hotels through both managed and owned properties. The robust pipeline of managed properties will increase the overall footprint to over 200 hotels in the coming years, significantly boosting employment generation.”
Expanded Global Reach
“The growing competitiveness of ITC’s world-class brands has enabled us to take our products and services to over 100 global markets. Foreign exchange earnings of ITC and its subsidiaries have more than doubled since FY20 to over Rs. 9,500 crores,” Puri noted.
ITC is also actively pursuing strategic investments in neighbouring markets. Notable initiatives include the FMCG facility set up by ITC’s subsidiary, Surya Nepal Private Limited, and the launch of the iconic ITC Ratnadipa by ITC’s wholly-owned subsidiary, WelcomHotels Lanka Private Limited, which has been widely recognized as a jewel in Colombo’s hospitality landscape.
Agricultural Initiatives and Make-in-India Support
“As one of the largest procurers of agri-commodities, ITC supports 20 agri-value chains, sourcing over 3 million tons from 200 districts in 22 states. This enables ITC to derive unique sourcing efficiencies and offer identity-preserved, attribute-specific, traceable agri-commodities to discerning customers in India and overseas,” Puri said. ITC exports agri-commodities to over 85 countries, linking farmers to global value chains.
Supporting the ‘Make in India’ initiative, ITC continues to invest in building world-class infrastructure and ecosystems linked to its products and services. In the past two years, the company has invested in three owned luxury hotels, eight state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities, including for products covered under the production-linked incentive scheme, and has doubled the distribution of its FMCG products. Currently, nearly 90% of all raw materials are locally procured by the company.