PTI New Delhi

Large cement companies have reported a volume growth in the March 2025 quarter and expect enhanced performance in FY26 on better sales realisation and stable demand.

Leading listed cement firms like UltraTech, Ambuja Cements, ACC, Shree Cements, and Dalmia Bharat have retained around 7 to 7.5% growth for the cement industry in FY26, following government spending on infrastructure projects and rural recovery. However, they are cautious about the geopolitical tensions and changing trade landscape. In the March quarter, cement makers reported gains in volumes, ranging from 3.5 to 10% and an enhanced capacity utilisation on a year-on-year basis. 

However, their topline numbers continue to face challenges on account of lower year-on-year sales realisation, though input costs for coal, petcoke and diesel were significantly cheaper. The all-India average cement price was around Rs 350 per 50 kg bag in March 2025. Overall, in FY25, cement prices declined by 7% year-on-year to Rs 340/bag.

In FY24, the average prices stood at Rs 365/bag against Rs 375/bag in FY23, according to an Icra report.The rating agency expects an improvement in operating margins for the cement companies in FY26, helped by tailwinds, as a marginal hike in cement prices and stable input costs.

In Q4, UltraTech's consolidated sales volumes reached 41.02 MT, and for the entire fiscal 2024-25, it achieved the highest sales volumes of 135.83 million metric tonnes for the year, helped by acquisitions and ongoing expansions. Q4 FY25 and April saw some improvement in prices, said the top management of the Aditya Birla group flagship firm in a post-earnings call.

“We believe that this quarter, cement demand overall for the country would have grown around 4%.  UltraTech has done close to 10% volume growth,” its CFO Atul Daga said. Similarly, Ambuja Cements, the second-largest cement manufacturer of the country, reported a consolidated sales of 18.7 million tonnes in the March quarter, which was the “highest ever volume in a quarter” for the company.