New Delhi: Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries is exploring a possible entry into the aluminium business, opening a new chapter in the group’s long-running strategy of moving into large, capital-intensive industries.
The plan is still at an early stage and has not been finalised. However, people familiar with the matter have said Reliance is evaluating opportunities in aluminium production, including the possibility of connecting the business with its planned coal-gasification operations in Andhra Pradesh.
The move is significant because Reliance has historically entered industries where scale, infrastructure and long-term capital can create a strong competitive advantage. The group has already transformed itself from an oil and petrochemicals company into a much broader business spanning telecom, retail, digital services, media and energy.
Aluminium could become another part of that diversification story.
Reliance has secured two coal blocks in Andhra Pradesh, Recherla and Chintalpudi, for its planned coal-gasification project. The company is examining whether the output from such operations could support a wider industrial chain that includes metals production.
The timing is also interesting because Gautam Adani’s group is simultaneously making a major push into aluminium.
In June, Adani Enterprises announced plans for an investment of about $11.5 billion to develop an aluminium project in Odisha with UAE-based International Holding Company. The proposed project is expected to have capacity of around 2 million tonnes per year.
That puts two of India’s biggest business groups on potentially similar ground.
India’s aluminium demand is expected to rise as the country expands power infrastructure, renewable energy, electric vehicles, construction, transmission networks and manufacturing. Aluminium is widely used in power cables, automobiles, buildings and packaging because it is lighter than steel and conducts electricity efficiently.
For Reliance, the attraction is therefore not simply the metal itself. The bigger opportunity could be creating an integrated industrial business where energy, raw materials and manufacturing work together.
But entering aluminium would require significant investment and expertise. Mining, refining bauxite into alumina and then producing aluminium are complex operations, with large energy requirements and exposure to global commodity prices.
Reliance will also have to compete with established producers in India and abroad…
