Larsen & Toubro (L&T), Madras Cements, ACC are the other players who have already evinced interest in this nascent segment of the cement business.

The company has decided to put up its first RMC plant in Chennai with the idea of tapping the increased demand for RMC that is expected to arise out of various infrastructure projects such as fly-overs, bridges, etc that are being planned for the city, Zuari Cement's vice-president, marketing Krishna Srivastava said. The Bangalore and Hyderbad units will become operational next year.

The Chennai plant will have a capacity to produce 30 cu metre of concrete per hour and the project is estimated to cost about Rs 9 crore. He further said that land has been identified and the clearance from the Tamil NaduPollution Control Board (TNPCB) would be sought soon. The plant is likely to go on stream by the end of this calendar year. About 10 transit mixers are to be employed to transport concrete from the factory to the construction sites.

Currently, only L&T is operating a RMC plant in Chennai. While Madras Cements is expected to inaugurate its facility shortly, ACC and a few other players have reportedly indicated their interest in setting up plants in Chennai to cater to the growing demand for RMC.

Zuari Cement, according to Srivastava, is also looking at setting up three grinding units in South with a capacity of 6,000 tonnes per annum to produce fly ash-based blended cement. One unit is proposed in Chennai and may even be put up along with the RMC plant subject to the clearance of TNPCB.

Each plant is expected to cost about Rs 8 crore and clinker will be transported from the company's Yerraguntla plant which will then be mixed with fly ash procured from nearby power stations. For the Chennai grinding unitthe company is talking to Mettur power station for procuring fly ash. Sites have also been identified between Bangalore and Kolar for locating another grinding unit in Karnataka.

This will be apart from the two million tonne greenfield cement unit that is being planned in northern Karnataka.

The company tripled its capacity at Yerraguntla to two million tonnes per annum last year. The plant which was stabilising and has begun to work at higher capacity from March '99, Srivastava added.