Ladies and gentlemen, good day and welcome to the Q4 and FY25 earnings conference call of Himadri Speciality Chemical Limited, hosted by MUFG Securities. As a reminder, all participants' lines will be in listen-only mode, and there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions after the presentation concludes. Should you need assistance during the conference call, please signal an operator by pressing star then zero on your touch-tone phone. Please note that this conference is being recorded. I now hand the conference over to Mr. Bhavya Shah from MUFG Securities. Thank you, and over to you, sir.
Thank you. Welcome to the Q4 and FY25 earnings conference call. Today on the call, we have with us Mr. Anurag Choudhary, CMD and CEO; Mr. Shohmish, EVP Tire and Strategy; and Mr. Kamlesh Agarwal, CFO. This conference call may contain forward-looking statements about the company, which are based on beliefs, opinions, and expectations as of today. Actual results may differ materially. These statements are not the guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Our detailed safe harbor statement is given on page two of investor presentation of the company, which has been uploaded on the stock exchange and company website. With this, I now hand over the call to Mr. Anurag Choudhary. Over to you, sir.
Thank you, Bhavya. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to welcome you all to the Q4 FY25 earnings call of Himadri Speciality Chemical Limited. It's a pleasure to connect with you and share insights into our business strategy and outlook. More importantly, it's a moment of significance for us to reconnect and share the incredible journey we have been on, a journey marked by transformation and a deep-rooted purpose. It started over three decades ago with a single-minded vision to create impact through innovation. What started as a small coal-tar distillation unit in 1990 has today evolved into a global leader in specialty chemicals and new energy materials. At the heart of this evolution is our relentless focus on research and development, our belief in sustainable growth, and an unwavering commitment to deliver quality and value across everything we do.
We have, through relentless efforts, research and development, and innovation over the last 35 years, developed a very strong, sustainable, and growing business model. Today, we supply high-quality, tailor-made coal-tar pitch to our customers at the most economical cost globally. This provides a strong value proposition and significant cost advantage for our customers. Our commitment to delivering the highest standards of quality results in sustainable economic savings for our customers, thereby strengthening our collaboration and reinforcing our relationship. Through incremental improvements in operational efficiency and yields, we have successfully reduced costs and generated substantial long-term margins. By optimizing energy consumption and leveraging artificial intelligence capabilities across our operations, we have streamlined our processes. Over the years, we have built an integrated business model that spans across the carbon value chain, right from coal-tar pitch, specialty carbon black, and new energy material to high-valued derivatives like naphthalene, SNF, and PCE.
Our pioneering work in specialty pitches for defense applications, such as long-range missiles, has demonstrated not only our R&D capability but also our ability to innovate for greater good. Similarly, our developments in areas of lithium iron phosphate, cathode active material, anode material, circular economy products, treated blacks, conductive blacks, and zero impurity pitch are a testament to our innovative mindset and drive. What differentiates Himadri today is the depth of our integration, the scale of our capabilities, and the strategic move we have and are making, each one thoroughly placed to address emerging industry trends and needs. Our products are today available in almost 56 countries, serving multiple critical industries, including lithium-ion batteries, EV, aluminum, graphite, tire, inks, construction, plastics, paints, and many more.
During this financial year, Himadri was conferred with Company of the Year among the listed companies at IndiaChem 2024, which was organized by the Ministry of Chemicals and Petrochemicals in partnership with FICCI and EY. Moreover, we were also awarded with the DET Kudun Award for outstanding contribution to India's manufacturing economy at India Manufacturing Excellence Award 2025. This journey of growth has not been just about scale. It is about transformation. We have embraced the future through automation, AI-led analytics, and process standardization and optimization. We have transitioned into a truly data-driven enterprise, and our commitment to sustainability has been recognized globally. From being awarded with EcoVadis's Platinum Medal, which places us in the top 1% globally for sustainability practices, to earning a commendable B rating in our very first CDP assessment for 2024, which is indicative of a company that is taking coordinated action on addressing environmental issues.
From a social lens, our efforts are recognized, with Himadri bagging the prestigious Golden Peaker Award for HR Excellence 2024 at IOD 19 International Conference. In terms of execution, we continue to deliver on scale and strategy. At Singrauli, our work on brownfield expansion of specialty carbon black line from 60,000 metric tons per annum to 130,000 metric tons per annum is progressing as planned and is expected to be operational by Q3 FY26. This will take our overall carbon black capacity from 180,000 metric tons per annum to 250,000 metric tons per annum, which will make this the single largest site for a specialty carbon black facility in the world. This expansion will cater to the rapidly growing demand in specialty fiber blacks, conductive blacks, inks, plastics, coatings, and battery segments, further strengthening our position as a global leader in this high-value-added segment.
To enhance our value-added specialty product portfolio, we are once again forward-integrating to set up capacity to manufacture anthraquinone and carbazole from our existing oils, a testament to our prudent strategy and innovative mindset. These products are essential ingredients for dyes, pigments, pharmaceuticals, and electronic industries, and will add significant value across our value chain. These products are currently largely imported in India, and our objective is clear: to substitute imports with world-class domestic manufacturing and offer competitive global solutions. The high-value-added specialty product line is scheduled to go online in Q2 FY2027. On the logistics and export front, the commissioning of our dedicated liquid coal-tar pitch terminal at Haldia has opened new doors for global markets. In fact, our first export shipment was successfully dispatched in October 2024, a defining moment that paved the way for large-scale international liquid pitch supply.
We have also made significant progress post our acquisition of Birla Tyres as a strategic partner along with resolution applicant Dalmia Bharat Refractories Limited. This strategic entry into the tire manufacturing industry may look just like another example of forward integration for Himadri, owing to our rich legacy of working with carbon blacks. However, it is important to note that Himadri will not be selling any carbon black to Birla Tyres. Birla Tyres will be able to source carbon black at much more economical rates from other suppliers, and Himadri will continue to tap into the significant value-added market it has carved for its offerings in the carbon black segment. Modernization and revamping efforts are well underway, with operations set to begin in phases starting at the end of Q1 FY2026. We will focus on building a comprehensive product portfolio of specialty tires to serve the off-highway tire segment.
Simultaneously, we are working on the installation of our passenger car radial tire unit, which will take some time. This unit will have a strong focus on producing PCR tires catered to meet the needs of EVs, SUVs, and segment vehicles. We intend to lead the global e-mobility revolution by innovating next-generation tires that can meet the evolving demands of a sustainable future, catering to domestic as well as global demands. Our most transformational journey is now unfolding in the field of lithium-ion battery components, a space critical to energy transition. The global lithium-ion battery market has experienced significant growth, reaching an estimated $97.88 billion in the calendar year 2024, and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 14.58% over the next five years.
India's lithium-ion battery market too is experiencing rapid expansion, and projections estimate growth from $4.47 billion in 2024 to $16.09 billion in 2030, reflecting a CAGR of 23%. Moreover, the global EV market experienced significant growth, attaining a market size of $396.4 billion in 2024. This expansion has been fueled by multiple key factors, including increasing environmental awareness, advancement in battery technology, and government initiatives supporting EV adoption. Battery demand in India is expected to rise to 260 GWh by 2030, driven by the escalating adoption of EV and renewable energy storage systems. India registered an 8% penetration rate of EVs in 2024, which was 6.5% in 2023. This traction is becoming more and more prominent, with domestic producers Tata announcing the launch of premium yet affordable EVs this year, and two giants, Tesla and BYD, actively pursuing the EV car production plan in India.
We are well on our way to EV30 at the rate of 30, which aims to see about 80 million EVs on the road by 2030. The Indian government is also shaping the energy storage policy and regulatory framework to boost energy storage in the country. Apart from incentives to battery and car makers, the Government of India has been proactively taking progressive steps, such as the exemption of customs duty on imports of machinery and equipment, GST reduction, and the waiver of road tax that are aimed at making the EV growth smooth, and their proposition economically attractive to the masses. Across major use cases, lithium-ion battery technology has established itself as the dominant technology, owing to their market edge over other battery chemistries, such as sodium ion, in terms of critical parameters such as energy density, cycle life, charging time, reliability, and portability.
Recognizing that cathode materials account for over half the cost of lithium-ion batteries, we are positioning Himadri at the heart of the global clean energy movement. By 2030, global demand for lithium-ion cathode materials is expected to exceed 9 million tons annually. Lithium iron phosphate batteries have emerged as the dominant battery technology in China's EV market, according to over 60% of EV battery installations. In 2024 alone, the share of LFP battery technology in the cumulative battery installations of China was around 75%, up from 51.5% from the previous years. The exponential growth of electric vehicles and great-scale energy storage systems has propelled lithium iron phosphate batteries to the forefront of global demand, with over 70% of the automakers around the world now exploring LFP chemistry for the next-generation models. To meet this growing demand, we are establishing the first commercial plant of LFP cathode active materials globally outside China.
Our vision is to build a capacity of 200,000 metric tons per annum of LFP cathode active materials plants, sufficient to power 100 GWh of lithium-ion batteries, with the first phase of 40,000 metric tons per annum expected to be operational by Q3 FY2027. For us, this is more than a business opportunity; it is a national building effort aligned with India's Atma Nirbhar Bharat vision and its decarbonization goals.
While cathode takes the center stage, our research and development team is also making remarkable strides in working on anode chemistry, from natural, synthetic, and hybrid anode materials to next-generation silicon carbon for anodes. We are exploring every viable chemistry to improve battery performance, density, and charging time. In line with this, our collaboration with Sicona, driven by shared vision and synergies, has enabled us to accelerate the development cycle for silicon carbon anodes in a very short span of time.
Our belief is simple: battery breakthroughs won't just come from one component but from a holistic mastery of the ecosystem. As we innovate, we are also thinking ahead. The proliferation of lithium-ion batteries in the coming decade brings with it a new challenge: safe disposal and material recovery. I am pleased to share that our team is already exploring solutions in this domain, ensuring Himadri lives not just in creation but also in circularity. At the same time, we are also working on developing technology to recycle different types of waste materials, such as end-of-life tires, used engine oil, lubricating oil, and cooking oil, to produce value-added products to build a circular economy. Beyond batteries, our ambition extends into leveraging nanotechnology, an area we believe will be a true game-changer across multiple industries.
Leveraging our collaboration with Invati, the Himadri team is working day and night to undertake the development of disruptive solutions in the domain of battery materials and technology. At the same time, we are also working on exploring the niche use of this technology for crafting solutions in the domain of agriculture, human and animal health. At the core of everything we do believe is that the future will be shaped by those who can align industrial ambition with environmental responsibility. At Himadri, we are anchoring our growth in this philosophy. Whether it's expanding into new markets, investing in technology, or building new capabilities, our actions are rooted in a desire to create long-term value responsibly and purposefully.
Every decision we have made, whether it is forward-integrating into value-added chemicals, entering the tire industry, or building the new energy material platform, has been shaped by a dual mandate: to elevate India's industrial capabilities and to lead global change in sustainable manufacturing. By combining our deep value chain and expertise with frontier innovation, Himadri is not just responding to the needs and demands of a changing world; we are helping to shape it, and we are doing so with the confidence that we are building an organization that will deliver sustained value to all our stakeholders—shareholders, customers, communities, and the planet. My humble request is for you to kindly go through our investors' presentation in detail, as it covers all the aspects of our business. With that, I would like to hand over the proceedings to our CFO, Mr.
Thank you, Anurag ji. Good evening, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. I trust that everyone has had a chance to review our financial results and the latest investor presentations, which have been made available on both the stock exchanges and our company's website. Over the last five years, we have demonstrated a consistent and robust financial performance, reflecting the strength of our strategic focus and execution. Since FY 2021, our revenues have grown at an impressive CAGR of 29%. More significantly, our EBITDA has expanded at a CAGR of 60%, and our PAT—Profit After Tax—has grown at an exceptional 86% CAGR. These results are underpinned by enhanced focus on high-value specialty products and by a steady rise in our sales volumes, which have increased by 13% year-on-year during this period.
Now, turning to the standalone financial highlights for the full year FY 2025, we closed the year with a strong performance across all key metrics. Our sales volumes grew by 16% to 552,206 metric tons, up from 475,582 metric tons in the previous year. This volume growth translated into a solid top line, with total revenue reaching INR 4,596 crore, marking a 10% increase over FY 2024. Our focus on operational efficiencies and cost optimization helped drive EBITDA higher by 33%, which stood at INR 844 crore compared to INR 632 crore in the last year. Our EBITDA per ton reached INR 15,276 per ton, a 15% increase over FY 2024. At the bottom line, Profit After Tax rose by 36% to INR 558 crore, as against INR 411 crore in FY 2024. These results reinforce our ability to deliver consistent and profitable growth, even amidst a dynamic market environment.
In terms of financial health, we continue to maintain a resilient balance sheet. As of 31 March 2025, we hold a net positive cash balance of INR 371 crore, which gives us ample flexibility to pursue growth opportunities while maintaining a prudent approach to capital allocation. Our return on capital employed has also shown a steady upward trajectory, reaching 34% in FY 2025. It is a testament to our sharp focus on value creation and capital efficiency. Share of INR 1 each, which represents 60% of the face value for the financial year 2024-2025. This is subject to the approval of our shareholders. With these results, we believe we are well positioned to continue our upward trajectory, building on a foundation of financial strength, operational excellence, and strategic foresight. That's all from our side. We will now open the lines for question and answer. Thank you for your participation.
We will now begin the question and answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press Star and 1 on their touchstone telephone. If you wish to remove yourself from the question queue, you may press Star and 2. Participants are requested to use hands up while asking a question. Ladies and gentlemen, we will wait for a moment while the question queue assembles. The first question is from the line of Sanjesh Jain from ICICI Securities. Please go ahead.
Yeah, good afternoon, sir. Thanks for taking my call. I have a few questions. First, on the volume growth for this quarter, particularly the last two quarters, it has been declining. Any particular reason there is a sudden pressure on the volume which has stopped growing?
No, nothing like that. See, what is happening, we are focusing more on value-added products.
When you focus on value-added products, the production volume comes down, but the value addition is more. That is one of the reasons. The other reason is that at the end of the financial year, there was a shipment which was supposed to go, which got deferred to next year. That was the main reason for a little decline in the volume. Nothing else. Got it. Got it. When we say that we are focusing more on value-added products, the production is 50% almost is pitch, right? Which is liquid pitch we generally sell to the aluminum smelters. Apart from that, we got the oils and other things. When we say we are focusing on value-addition products, how should we see? Value-added products, they are naphthalene of high purity that we are making. That is one of the very critical products for us.
Other than that, specialty carbon black. When you convert from commodity to different grades of specialty, the volume comes down. Suppose a commodity product you are producing 100 tons, the specialty will be only 70 tons. That is one of the things. It depends on which grade of specialty you are doing. That also, the productivity changes. Since we are going into value-added items, that is the reason. Overall volume will again be normal in the current year.
In FY 2026, now that in the last two or three years there has been supernormal growth in terms of volume for us, do we expect the volume trajectory to hold on in FY 2026 as well?
Yeah, definitely. We expect the volume trajectory to hold on and grow further.
What's the expectation for the growth in FY 2026 in terms of volume for us?
Total, if you look at our numbers, last year we did a PAT of INR 411 crore. This year we did a PAT of, on a standalone basis, INR 558 crore. By FY 2027, we expect a PAT of INR 800 plus crore.
INR 800 plus crore of PAT in FY 2027. Yes, yes, yes. Got it. Got it. Got it. The follow-up question is on the pitch. You did mention that we are looking for an export and we did a maiden shipment. How should we see the export opportunity in pitch?
The export opportunity is very bright in pitch. We are supplying material to different geographies. In the current year, we expect the volumes to ramp up.
This will be in what geography?
It will be in all the geographies: Middle East, Southeast.
Okay, Southeast and Middle East largely. No, no, changing to the carbon black. One of your peers did mention, announced earlier, we have seen some amount of pressure on the spreads on the carbon black. Are we seeing any pressure on the carbon black for us or its specialty so we are largely protected?
We are largely protected. Our very minimum volume goes to tire industry. So we are largely protected. From our side, we do not see any pressure.
What is the large application?
Fiber black, conductive black, plastics, inks, and coatings.
Got it. Got it. On the tire business, can you help us understand where are we in the business commissioning? When should we see revenue coming up? Any thought process on our tire business?
Yes, yes. We have been revamping the asset for the last one year, and the process is on.
We have already produced sample tires and have given for BIS approval and are expecting the approval in the next 25-30 days. Post that, we will commence production in phases. First phase will be 10-20 tons. Then we will gradually ramp up the production on a quarter-on-quarter basis.
Got it. Got it. We should see some material revenue coming in from the second half of this financial year. Will that be a fair assumption?
Yes. For the second half of this financial year, you'll see some revenue coming.
Got it.
I think major revenue will start coming from the next year. Next year.
Got it. Got it. Any particular region we are focusing in East India because we are closely placed there, or it will be more like a pan-India launch?
No, it will not be a pan-India launch because the volume we will be producing in the first phase will be very small to launch on a pan-India basis. We have selected five, six states in which we will start launching the product. Post that, once the production ramps up, we will be introducing new states.
Any particular state you want to highlight? So far, a state which is our priority as of now?
That once we are going to launch, I will indicate.
Got it. Got it. My last question is on the specialty value-added product, which we have announced a CapEx of INR 120 crore. What is the potential asset turn we are looking in that?
Actually, INR 220 crore.
Sorry?
You are saying for the specialty carbon, specialty products.
No, no, specialty product. INR 120 crore of CapEx.
It is 2:1. Carbazole and. 1.8 or 2:1.
Almost 2x of the, so INR 240 crores is the potential revenue. This oil will be INR 220 crores. Selling the less oil, right? The volume-wise, it will not change. There will be more realization gain which will happen to us. That is the way to.
Today, we are selling oil at, suppose, INR 40,000. Correct. This product will be very high value-added product. That will be the extra margin we will be deriving from this chemical.
Got it. Volume remaining the same, we will benefit from higher realization, higher EBITDA per kg.
Actually, that is what we are doing.
No, that's also visible. Now that we are on probably one of the highest EBITDA per kg, we have hit, what, INR 23 EBITDA per kg.
Do you think there is more scope to improve from here, or we should stabilize over here? How should one see this?
We are on the full annual basis. We are on INR 15,276 EBITDA per ton. On a Q4 basis, it is INR 17,008.
INR 17. Correct. Correct. Sorry, my bad. INR 17.1
per metric ton EBITDA. And we are confident of maintaining this and strengthening it further.
Got it. Got it. There is no seasonality, right? It is all sustainable.
It is not a seasonal business.
There is no seasonality in it. Correct. Great, sir. What is the CapEx number expected for FY 2026? Cash CapEx?
Cash CapEx will be around INR 600-700 crore.
FY 2026.
FY 2026. To internal accrual.
All internal accrual.
Yes, yes.
Super, sir. Thanks. Thanks for taking all those questions so patiently and best of luck for the coming quarter.
Thank you so much. Thank you.
Before we take the next question, a reminder to all the participants that you may press Star and 1 to ask a question. The next question is from the line of Aditya Khetan from Smith Institutional Securities. Please go ahead.
Yeah, thank you for the opportunity. Sir, my first question is, sir, our total carbon black capacity stands at 180,000 tons. Out of this, 60,000 tons is the specialty carbon black. The remaining 1.2 lakh ton capacity, now you mentioned to an earlier participant that we are not very concentrated on the tire sector. This 1.2 lakh ton is basically the commoditized grade of carbon black, if I'm not wrong. Where are we selling this apart from the tire sector?
Question on non-tire sector. There are different applications which goes into commodity also for plastics, for other applications. There we are selling.
Sir, for plastics, for all these reasons, specialty carbon black is used. Yeah? Sir, for plastics and these applications, specialty carbon black is used. The commodity grade goes towards the tire sector.
There are different grades of carbon black which go in the same application in different grades. Some grades are commodity, some grades are specialty. Like for MRG, we are selling for profiles, we are selling for hoses, we are selling for this conveyor belt, we are selling. Okay.
Okay. Sir, any particular number, if you can, sir, how much end user concentration is to the tire sector? Like 10%, 20%, 30%? Any sort of figure?
Tires in our case is less than 25%.
Less than 25%. Okay. Sir, onto your new capex of the specialty carbon black, which you are planning to add 70,000 tons at a capex of INR 220 crore. Sir, I believe the replacement cost looks very lower in case when we look at our competitor. So they are setting up a similar specialty carbon black line with a capex per ton of roughly around INR 90,000. We are setting it up at a cost of around INR 30,000 per ton. Sir, why there is such a stark difference in our competitor's capex and our capex on a similar project like specialty carbon black? Any thoughts on this?
That is the strength of Himadri. In fact, this question you should ask to the peer. That is the strength of Himadri to converting low capex and high RoCE. That's why our RoCE is 34%.
Okay. Any sort of a technological difference, sir? Can you highlight?
Definitely, technological difference is there. That's why we are setting up such a big unit. We will be the largest single-site specialty carbon black plant in the world. It is basically integration.
Okay. Sir, any number if you can put? Like what sort of spreads can we make on this specialty carbon black? What are we making on our existing specialty carbon black line of 60,000 tons?
We do not give product-wide margin. To give you a broad number, specialty carbon black margin differs from INR 20,000-INR 50,000, depending on what grade you are producing, what application you are selling to.
Correct. Sir, where are we in this change? From INR 20,000 to INR 50,000? Any sort of a number if you can share?
Number we do not share specifically for product-wise. We are in this journey. We have started this journey five years back. I think there is a long way to go.
Okay. Sir, any idea on what is the outlook for carbon black for the next two to three years? Considering because we are not much dependent on tire, where we are witnessing material weakness, so other sectors, how are they expected to perform?
With our order book and our contractual agreements, we are placed in a very good situation for the next two to three years, clearly.
Okay. Sir, just one last question. You had mentioned in your presentation that the Birla Tyres, the requirement of carbon black will not be sourced from our facility. It would be from a third-party player. Why is it so, sir? Any sort of we are producing some higher grade than we want to get some better realizations as compared to what Birla Tyres would be making a tire? Any thoughts like why are we not focused on the integration part here?
See, for us, every business has its own P&L. We do not club P&L. If Birla Tyres can get raw material at a better competitive rate and Himadri is able to sell its carbon black at a premium rate and getting more value, there is no point selling to Birla Tyres. Every business has its own article and looks after their own P&L.
Okay. Sir, if I may ask further on this, compared to what you said, we might get raw material at better prices. What would be the difference in realization of ours versus the competitor, if any, which we can source the raw material for Birla Tyres?
It is not a fixed difference. It changes on negotiation to negotiation. Till now, we are able to get a very good price compared to what we are going to selling in the market. That is the reason we do not want to sell to Birla Tyres.
Okay. Got it, sir. Thank you, sir. That is it from my side. Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Nishant Agrawal from Kohinoor Investments. Please go ahead.
Hello. Can you hear me? Yes, yes. Please.
I would expect you to please use your handset.
Yeah. I am on the handset. I will switch off my speaker. This is Nishant Agrawal here. Sir, I would like to know, one is the PLI scheme. Have you applied for the PLI scheme?
Nishant, for us, there is no PLI scheme as of date. The PLI scheme is for advanced cell manufacturing.
The companies who are setting up a cell facility, they have applied and have been allocated by the government. In that, there is a condition that you have to localize your procurement, and that percentage will increase year on year. That is how the benefit will pass to component manufacturers like Himadri.
Okay. In the future, are we going in for battery manufacturing as well?
No, no. No way. We want to focus on components. That is our business. That is where we have done all the efforts. R&D, innovation, and cell manufacturing is not our core and will not go for cell manufacturing.
Okay. Next, sir, the tire division. As we can see, all other companies, EBITDA margin or profit margins are in the range of 10-12%. We will be competing with them. Our margins are supposed to be in those range, or are we going to be a little better than those companies?
I think it's too preliminary to predict the margins now. Let's give one or two quarters go. Let's see how we perform. Then I'll be able to give right numbers.
Okay. Our total capacity for the tire division, in case next year we are running full-fledged, what would be the revenue, sir, from that?
I don't think we'll be running full-fledged next year. Total capacity as of date is 400 TPD. Four hundred. In different types of tires. We expect to ramp this up in the next three to four years' time.
Three to four years' time. Okay. Yes, yes. Right. Thank you so much, sir. That's from my side. Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Shreya from Oaklane Capital Management LLP. Please go ahead.
Good evening, sir. Am I audible?
Ma'am, I would require you to please use your handset.
Yeah, I'm using my handset. Am I audible?
Yes, yes. Please go ahead.
Yes, sir. Sir, I'm new to the company, so just wanted to understand. You said that our volume in your prior comment, you said the volumes have come down because we have moved towards the value-added product. However, if I do a simple math of the total revenue divided by the volumes, my per-unit price realization is coming down. Can you just help me how to look at this number?
The raw material prices have also come down. The selling price is a derivative of raw material prices. That is the reason the prices have come down.
Second, what is happening is that when we go for value-added products, it is not significant in terms of volume, but in terms of profitability, it is very significant. It adds more to your bottom line rather than a contribution to top line. The commodity material quantity reduces. That is the reason. Plus, in this year, our one shipment was deferred at the end of March, which resulted in some reduction in volume compared to quarter on quarter. If you see on a whole year basis, there has been significant improvement of 13%.
Y es, yes. The volume has increased year on year. That is where my question was coming from. Yeah. Any sense on how much the raw material prices have cooled off? How much?
If you look at FY2024, the cost of goods sold was INR 63,820. This year, it is INR 57,080. It has come down by 10%.
Okay. Thank you, sir. Thank you.
The next question is from the line of Preet from Wealth Advisory.
Yes. Sir, my question is more regarding the macro aspect of Russia. I mean, I believe that the reason the carbon black market has done very well is because the sanctions on Russia came in, and a lot of materials started getting exported to Europe, which allowed even the domestic market to do well. In the eventuality, whether if that changes, how will that impact our company? Could you please shed some light on that?
Yeah, very good question. Actually, that is the differentiating factor. Our business model and business that we have built is not based on opportunities. Unlike other companies, a lot of companies are being impacted with what China is doing.
You'll be pleased to know that there is no impact of China on Himadri business model. We supply, just for example, we supply coal-tar pitch to our customers in liquid form at a temperature of 260 degrees Celsius. We are supplying to our customers at a price which is more or less ex-China or less than China price. Even then, we are earning good profit. That is the integration. That is operational efficiency. That is what Himadri has developed. The same for carbon black. Carbon black, the focus why we have not kept on opportunistic market of commodity black is because the opportunity will come today, and it will be just time-bound. Our vision is to have a sustainable long-term business. That is where specialty comes into play. We are not supplying to any opportunistic customers where this delta is there.
That is the biggest strength of the company.
You have other peers who are supplying to that opportunity. In the event they have that change?
Our volumes are hardly anything. We are 180,000 tons. I do not have 1 million tons or 800,000 tons to sell. I can very well see whom to sell and have selected customers who value quality and long-term relationship.
Wonderful. You are basically pretty confident of sustaining the current numbers and improving them as per your plans and as you explained over the next two years for the INR 800 crore profitability that you are targeting within two years.
100%.
Wonderful. Wonderful. Thank you, sir.
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, you may press star and one to ask a question. The next question is from the line of Darshan Shah from BS Investments. Please go ahead.
Hello. Am I audible?
Yes, yes. Please.
Sir, my questions are largely around the LFP business. First of all, have we signed any off-take agreement or MAU with OEMs or battery manufacturers for our LFP output?
No, not yet. But the samples have been approved.
What is the stage? Second, we have to sell the samples, send the samples to them from demo plant. Once that is approved, then the commercial plant, there will not be much time required for approving from commercial plant. Post that, only the MAU will decide. The good thing is that we have got very favorable reply from the OEMs when we have sent the first few samples. The results have been very encouraging. Okay. That is nice to hear. On the similar ground, near post-commercialization, how much revenue do you expect this segment to contribute in its first full year of operations?
In the first full year of operation, it will have a top line of around INR 2,200 to 2,400 crore at full capacity utilization. This is the basis of today's market price. Okay. What is the target capacity of LFP by the year end FY2026? No, no. FY2026, there is no capacity. FY2027 Q3, we will have 40,000 metric tons up and running.
Oh, okay. Okay. Got it. Your presentation mentioned it is for both domestic and exports. Your focus would be towards what initially, more of domestic or more of exports?
More of exports. Domestic, whatever material will be there, requirement will be there, we will be meeting that. We will be the only commercial manufacturer. Then we will be growing our capacity depending on the domestic and international market, which will be huge.
Okay. Your phase one, you mentioned somewhere around 1,100.
Next is that Himadri is the only company. We'll be the first manufacturing plant in the world other than China for LFP chemistry.
Got it, sir. Finally, sir, your deal since you mentioned that it will be in FY2027, it will be up and running. The presentation mentions INR 1,130 crore of CapEx. How much can we expect it to be booked for FY2026, and how much beyond FY2026 of the INR 1,126 crore?
I think INR 300 crore will be in FY2026, and balance, most of it will be in FY2027.
Got it. Got it. That was very helpful, sir. Thank you, and all the best.
Thank you so much.
Thank you. Thank you. The last question is from the line of Rudran Shkalra from MB Investments. Please go ahead.
Hi. Good evening. Hello. Good evening. Yeah. My question is precisely around Birla Tyres.
What are the segments that initially you want to get in the tire segment? Is it off-highway first, or is it passenger vehicle, or is that going to be happening simultaneously? You also want to get into the mainstream 1,000 by 20 and 95 tires. The other question along the tire industry is, what sort of business model are you going to be planning? What sort of dealer network or distributor network are you planning? As you just mentioned earlier, you were saying that initially you're going to have a limited capacity. Would you want to go in bigger cities, or would you want to go in places where the business is more? How will you strategize it if you could tell me the product and the distribution or the dealer network? That would be really great.
Yeah. Sure, sure. Initially, the target will be to sell agri tires and mining tires, along with that, bias tires for the commercial vehicle. The next phase will be passenger car radial tires and EV tires, third phase. Plus, in addition to that, we will be moving on to specialized tires over the years. It is going to be a journey of the next three to five years where the entire transformation will happen starting from bias for commercial to EV, PCR, and OHT tires.
Fair enough.
Regarding the dealer network and all, once we launch our product, we will come up with a full report on that. That is the time I will be loved to share that.
Just a follow-up question. Just in case you decide to get into the particular dealer and specialized dealer distributorship, do you want to grow slow once the production starts and once you have the capacity to dispose them in the market? Do you want to just get into just a point one distributor and then dealers, or is it going to be regional dealers, and then how is it going to be? At least strategy, you must have thought something about it.
We have our strategy fully aligned and made and that is very much in place. At the right point of time, I'll disclose the strategy. Not now.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Anubhav from MC Research. Please go ahead.
Hello. Yeah, hi. Thanks for taking my question. I wanted to understand what is the export share for our carbon black business, maybe in terms of volumes or sales? At the industry level, you could also share what is the net export levels in the industry?
In the overall top line for FY 2025, our export sales was 27% in terms of total sales.
Okay. Okay. Specific to carbon black, could you share what could be the exposure to exports?
Exposure to carbon black would be around 35-40%. 35-40%. For the industry level, would you have any data, like approximately how much would the Indian carbon black industry have an export exposure? Much less. Much less.
Okay. Okay. The last question was regarding a specialty product which we are eyeing for, carbazole. If you could illustrate a couple of applications, I mean, how, for example, for pharma or electronics, I mean, what are the end users in this segment?
Carbazole is used for making violet in the pigment industry. That is the only way of making violet. Currently, it is being imported, and there are very niche producers of carbazole. Himadri will be one of the first companies to do that.
Okay. Okay. For the pharma industry?
Hello? The specific application.
Okay. Okay. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much.
Thank you. In the interest of time, that was the last question for today. I now hand the conference over to the management for closing comments.
Just once again, if you have more questions, you can take. If they have more people who are having more questions, we are okay with it. You can take peace.
Okay. The next question is from the line of Yash, who is an individual investor. Please go ahead. Hello. Yes, yes. Please. Congratulations, sir, first of all, for amazing set of numbers. And thank you for the opportunity. I just wanted to know majority of my questions has already been covered. I just wanted to confirm what is the vision that we have, let's say, down the line, three years, four years, from here in terms of market share, in terms of revenue and profitability. The second question is, I saw one slide where we have mentioned the uses in electronic items and some pharma and some, I think, missiles applications also. Can you please elaborate on that part, like what are we doing exactly on those segments?
See, we have given a clear guidance that FY2027, our PAT will be 800 plus.
That clearly lays down the roadmap for growth, and it will be coming from all around business, from our existing business and the new businesses that we are entering and the capacities which are setting up, right from specialty chemicals like anthraquinone, carbazole, from higher revenues in terms of exports for coal-tar pitch, from the capacity expansion of specialty carbon black. There is much, much more to come. If you go to next year, FY2028, that will be a year where your LFP will be in full production. Your other products, which we are also in pipeline, they will also start. Every year, you will see very strong numbers coming up. We make a very specialized pitch which goes into DRDO for use in long-warrant missiles. Beyond this, I cannot disclose. It's an NDA.
Okay. That's amazing, sir. That's amazing to hear that we have long-term visibility and sustainability in terms of number and profitability and revenue share. Also, how do you see this as an opportunity in terms of this DRDO tie-up and defense, given that the whole Europe thing is now revamping their own defense capacities? As you guys focus more on the export part, do we see any more addressable market over there?
It's a very niche market and definitely growing at a good pace. Have you any other questions?
Yash, does that answer your question?
Actually, I cannot hear you. The voice was not audible in between. Is my voice clear?
Coal-tar pitch for defense application we are selling is a very niche application, and it is growing year on year.
Okay. Currently, how much percentage is that sizable amount as of now, or will it be sizable amount in terms of percentage going ahead, maybe FY2028 and way forward from there?
It's sizable amount, but we don't want to give a number to that.
Okay. Understood. No issue, sir. Thank you, sir, for the opportunity, and all the best for the future. Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, that was the last question for today. I now hand the conference over to the management for closing comments.
Thank you, everyone. Thank you for your support, and thank you for your trust in Himadri.
Thank you, Bhavya.
Thank you. On behalf of MUFG Securities, that concludes this conference. Thank you for joining us, and you may now disconnect.