Praj Industries looks beyond ethanol slowdown, targets data centres and semiconductors

Mumbai: Praj Industries, a technology and engineering company serving ethanol and biofuel producers, is looking beyond its core business as domestic demand falters, betting on hyperscale data centres, semiconductor water treatment and new biofuels for its next leg of growth.

The Pune-based company is stepping up diversification as funding constraints at customers and an oversupplied ethanol market choke fresh projects.

"Our first-generation ethanol domestic business continued to experience a slowdown in greenfield projects," said a senior company official who requested not to be named. "Currently, inquiries for greenfield projects are only from customers in ethanol-deficit areas of states like Tamil Nadu and Assam. We believe that this situation will continue till the time we see policies around higher blending mandates."

Funding problems are delaying projects already in Praj's order book, while excess ethanol capacity is slowing execution and revenue conversion, the official added.

The company recently secured a global supply agreement for modular infrastructure for hyperscale data centres, with a minimum business commitment of about $50 million over 2.5 years. The deal gives Praj an entry into a new global engineering market beyond bioenergy.