Chairperson View
It is with great pleasure that I write to you about your Company’s progress. 2021 certainly saw the global economies rebounding, especially the Indian economy which posted 8.7% growth in FY 2021-22 as against a contraction of 6.6% in the previous year. The challenges, though, for the dye and dye intermediate industry was far from over. Its demand continued to be weak for a large part of the year with sluggish textiles market and the input prices peaked to levels never seen before. It was only during the third quarter that the demand revived with festivals around. This was again short lived as rising crude oil prices and Russia-Ukraine war proved dampener.
During the year, our Dahej plant has started commercial manufacturing of global standard Precipitated Silica. Multiple grades are being manufactured, tailor-made to customer requirements, and several batches have already been dispatched, garnering customer appreciation.
I see this product line-up opening a new era of opportunity for us. It will be a game changer in attracting newer customer market. In recent times, Precipitated Silica products have gained significant traction for their ability to deliver high performance to tyre and rubber products and in an environment-friendly way. Additionally, it provides multiple avenues for innovation. Our teams are actively exploring portfolio expansion to micro pearl silicas and highly dispersible silicas, and alongside targeting new customer base.
We see ample opportunities in this space, and intend to spend the next couple of years in aggressively building its market.
In recent months, our H-Acid product was facing challenges of lower demand due to adverse economic conditions. And so, we took a strategic decision to shut down the plant instead of burning cash and blocking capital. The shutdown will not have any effect on the Company’s performance, and we believe it will help channelise funds in the right growth areas. We will be watchful of the market, and resume this plant’s operations once the demand improves.
At AksharChem, we value our shareholders and investors who have always believed and supported us. We operate with a philosophy of always rewarding them well and creating value. This year, the Company has undertaken the Buy-back of equity shares from shareholders in proportion to their shareholding to enhance their value and to improve financial ratios by way of distribution of surplus funds to them. Your Company bought back 1,69,491 equity shares at Rs. 590 each. The buy-back was done at a premium of 17.11% and 16.77% over the closing market price of the Equity Shares on NSE and BSE and more than 6,000 shareholders benefited. I express my gratitude to all the participating shareholders and continue to seek your support going forward.
In a world where environmental and social risks have become the top area of concern, sustainable growth is the only way forward. I am happy to state that long before the sustainability agenda got global attention, your Company was practising them. We are maintaining a large green belt and our plants are performing beyond regulatory norms in terms of waste management, water consumption and emissions. We continue to maintain a policy of zero discharge. Our plants are also amongst the safest, thanks to our safety teams who have been at the helm of implementing practices and training people. We also run multiple community welfare programmes including supporting education and healthcare efforts.
As a leader of the Board, I assure that your Company is strongly practices high standards of governance and ethical practices. We have adequate board independence to ensure rights of all stakeholders are considered.
AksharChem has had a momentous journey. I thank all the stakeholders for their continued support and guidance. We remain committed to creating value for each of you. While we see some short-term challenges with high inflation, I assure you that we are exercising adequate cautiousness and controls to overcome them. We are confident of the chemical industry’s long-term prospects. India’s atmanirbharta focus and the rising prominence of the Indian chemical players in the global landscape bodes well.
We believe that we have created the right to win with presence in right product and geographies and having long-term relations with key customers.