Another Ceramic Chapter

Most leading players in India have been lamenting about over capacity in the industry and consequent pressure on prices of tiles, particularly of the vitrified variety. This is but a polite way of saying that the industry is being taken over by tile titans from Gujarat located in the western part of India.

It is estimated that nearly 60-80 million sqm of annual production capacity was created in this state within the last two years, with an investment of about US$ 378.2 million! Going by the capacity figure of 340 million sqm touted by the Indian Council of Ceramic Tiles and Sanitaryware (ICCTAS) (www.icctas.com), the apex industry body, this amounts to an addition of some 25-33%!