Procter & Gamble to invest Rs 2,000 cr in India to set up manufacturing plant in Gujarat

FMCG products maker Procter & Gamble India on Wednesday said it will invest Rs 2,000 crore here to set up a new personal healthcare manufacturing facility in Gujarat.

This would be the ninth plant of Procter & Gamble in India, which owns popular brands like Ariel, Gillette, Head & Shoulders, Oral-B, Pampers, Pantene, Tide, Vicks and Whisper. The new plant spread across a 50,000 sq metre area in Sanand will produce products that are part of P&G’s global healthcare portfolio, especially digestives, a company statement said. “This facility will be operational over the next few years and is set to become an export hub for P&G globally, as it will help P&G India in serving consumers across the globe,” it said.

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Besides, this will also help create hundreds of direct and indirect jobs, thereby offering a significant boost to the local economy, it added. The investment was announced by P&G India CEO LV Vaidyanathan in a meeting with Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel. “The facility builds on top of P&G India’s existing manufacturing footprint of 8 plants across the country and expands the existing presence in Gujarat,” the statement said. This is the second big investment by an MNC operating in the Indian FMCG space in the last one year. Earlier in September, global food & beverage conglomerate Nestle SA announced plans to invest Rs 5,000 crore in India in the next three-and-a-half years to accelerate its core business in the country and leverage new growth opportunities.

Procter & Gamble’s upcoming Sanand unit would be an export hub in India. The company already operates a manufacturing plant in Sanand, Ahmedabad, since 2015. The new unit “will use state-of-the-art technology to manufacture superior products in the digestive wellness space and is designed to be fully automated based on the modern concept of Industry 4.0. This concept employs futuristic technology, including the latest vision systems for quality checks, robotic equipment for material movement and operator cockpits to name a few,” it said. “The investment is being planned through an unlisted private company and does not impact any of the listed public companies of the P&G group in India,” the company said.

Commenting on the development the Gujarat Chief Minister said: “This manufacturing site will also be an export hub, and we welcome all the opportunities it unlocks for the local community”. P&G India CEO LV Vaidyanathan said: “With the new state-of-the-art facility, our objective is to transform India into an export hub for P&G globally. It also marks a significant milestone in our journey, enabling us to extend our local footprint and further elevate our capacity to deliver exceptional innovations to consumers”.