"WE ARE AIMING TO ACCELERATE GROWTH IN THE NON-AGRICULTURAL SEGMENT"

Ajit Venkataraman, CEO of Finolex Industries Limited, discusses how his pipes and fittings business delivered the most profitable Q3 and the factors contributing to this growth. He also touched upon the new market segments the company is aiming to tap and how they are dealing with volatility in the prices of PVC pipes in an interview with Nisha Shukla.

- Nisha Shukla

How is the market shaping for agriculture and non-agriculture pipes and fittings businesses? 

The pipes and fittings industry experienced a phenomenal Q3, particularly Finolex, which achieved a high record and was the best Q3 ever. The strong performance was primarily driven by high demand in the agriculture sector, with a lot of pent-up demand in the market resulting in us doing more than 90,000 metric tons in Q3 of FY23.

Looking at the five-year compounded annual growth rates (CAGRs), both the agricultural and non-agricultural markets have performed well. The agriculture market has grown at a rate of 8-10 per cent CAGR over the last five years, and the non-agriculture market has grown upwards at a rate of 15 per cent.

Looking forward to the next five years, we expect the overall market will grow anywhere between 10-15 per cent, with the plumbing and sanitation segment growing faster than the agricultural segment.

Which other key segment will be of prime focus to you apart from agriculture?

We are a 40 + year-old brand and have a long-standing reputation in the agricultural segment. Our products are well-known for their quality and durability, with pipes purchased by farmers over 40 years ago still functioning well.

We are well known in the market for our quality; even the farmers ask for Finolex pipes. So that is the strength of our brand. Over the past five years, we are gradually transitioning into the plumbing and sanitation segment, with a split of 35 per cent for non-agriculture and about 65 per cent for agriculture. As we move forward, we aim to grow the non-agriculture or the plumbing and sanitation segment and achieve an even split within the next 2-3 years.