Indian lubricants blender Maximus International Ltd. plans to triple its production capacity in East Africa, the company announced, setting a high growth target with eyes on extending its reach across the continent. The company operates in the region through its wholly owned subsidiary, Nairobi, Kenya-based MX Africa Ltd.
Maximus will expand the production capacity at its African facility from 20,000 kiloliters (17,986 metric tons) per year to 60,000 kl/y over the next two to three years. The project will cost Rs 25 crore (U.S. $3.1 million). It has set a compound annual growth rate goal of 20% over the next two to three years.
The company operates in the region through its wholly owned subsidiary, Nairobi, Kenya-based MX Africa Ltd., which acquired subsidiary Quantum Lubricants EA Ltd. in 2019. Quantum built its only lube blending plant in 2014, and the facility makes automotive engine oils, metalworking fluids, grease and other lubricants.
“By almost tripling our manufacturing capacity, we will be ideally placed to exploit the market potential in our focus markets,” Maximus Managing Director Deepak Raval said in a press release. The company currently distributes to Tanzania and Uganda.
Maximus aims to increase sales this year in Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, whether through a new subsidiary or an existing distribution partner, the company said.
“The company has further identified [the Democratic Republic of Congo], South Sudan, Malawi and Zambia as high-potential markets,” it continued. “While the focus is on East and South Africa, [Maximus] is also drawing up plans to enter the West African markets of Nigeria and Ghana in the near future. Plans to set up manufacturing units in some of these countries are on the drawing board stage presently.”
Raval said Maximus Is conducting studies about prospects in those markets. It recently posted a 133% jump in net profit for the first quarter this year.
In its most recent quarterly earnings report in June, Maximus expressed enthusiasm about opportunities in Africa. “The company now plans to consolidate its operations and foray into new markets in both Asia and Africa,” Maximus Chief Financial Officer Milind Joshi said in the company’s earnings press release. “The company is confident that it can sustain the continuous growth that it has been maintaining for the last five years by expanding its footprint in the African continent.”
Maximus also manufactures and distributes lubricants in the middle east through its United Arab Emirates-based Maximus Global FZE subsidiary. It claims more than 400 customers across 25 countries.