ITC plans to invest Rs 20,000 crore over the next five years to develop its future business.

NEW DELHI: ITC, a conglomerate spanning FMCG to hotels, will invest Rs 20,000 crore over the next five years to enhance its structural competitiveness and future-readiness. Of this investment, 35-40% will go towards the FMCG business, 30% towards paperboard and packaging, and the remainder towards agriculture and other sectors.

ITC CMD Sanjiv Puri stated on Friday, "Despite challenges, our investments across all businesses to enhance structural competitiveness and build an enterprise for the future position ITC well to capitalize on emerging market opportunities. Our unwavering confidence in India's growth is reflected in ITC’s Rs 20,000 crore investment plan for the medium term."

The Kolkata-based company reported gross revenue of Rs 69,446 crore and a profit of Rs 20,422 crore for FY24, with non-cigarette revenue making up about 65% of net revenue. Puri noted, "The cigarettes business revenue grew at a CAGR of nearly 13.5% over the last two years, with volumes exceeding pre-pandemic levels." Regarding the hotel business, which will soon be demerged and listed separately, Puri highlighted its structural strengthening, with FY24 revenue nearing Rs 3,000 crore and EBITDA exceeding Rs 1,000 crore.

The planned capital expenditure for the FMCG sector over the next five years is estimated at Rs 7,000-8,000 crore. Puri mentioned a focus on building Integrated Consumer Goods Manufacturing and Logistics (ICML) facilities to shorten the time and distance between production and market. Currently, ITC has 11 such facilities, with two more under construction. The company is also considering a Greenfield plant for paperboard and packaging materials, as its Bhadrachalam plant is nearing capacity.