Buoyed by the bullish growth of the Indian enzymes market, Advanced Enzymes Technologies Ltd (AETL) is planning to invest Rs 150 crore in the next three years. The enzyme major is planning to set up three more units, including one through its overseas venture.
Managing director CL Rathi said, “We are setting up a unit at Pitampur in Indore with an investment of Rs 70 crore apart from Jalna agri-biotechnology park in Aurangabad acquired recently.”
AETL has a plant at Sinnar in Nasik with a fermentation capacity of 120 m3 (meter cube). The total production capacity is likely to increase to 320 m3 after the Indore plant gets operational.
Focussed on Asia Pacific, AETL is also operating in a key African market. With global footprints in 30 countries, it is looking at entering new markets overseas.
“We are looking at the markets in China, Malaysia and Vietnam. We are interested in working jointly with the local partners in these countries,” said Rathi.
While the bio-industrial sector is estimated to have touched Rs 395 crore, the enzymes market in India has clocked Rs 250 crore. AETL has 25-30% of the market share.
While the almost $4.5 bn global market for enzymes is growing at 7-8%, the Indian market is growing at 12-15%.
“Food processing is a very important vertical for us. We are exploring opportunities in brewery, which we want to take on in a big way,” said Rathi.
The company spends almost 10% of its revenue on research and development. It has filed 27 patents so far, and plans to file 40 more this year in different areas like diabetes, cancer, peptic ulcer, pain management, oil extracts and leather processing.