Pakka Q3 FY26 conference call highlights stabilization of PM3, Progress in Jagriti Project, Strategic pause on US and Guatemala activities

Pakka Q3 FY26 conference call highlights stabilization of PM3, Progress in Jagriti Project, Strategic pause on US and Guatemala activities

The Pulp and Paper Times | 5 Feb 2026

Taking the earning conference call on the Q3 FY 2026 results, Mr. Ved Krishna, Vice Chairman and Group CEO of Pakka Limited, informed the investors that the first two quarters of this year have been a little bit of a challenge, mainly because of the extension at the shutdown period when the company was trying to expand the capacity of PM3 and bring part of the Jagriti project online. He said that the profitability is turning around and the company is expecting even better performance going forward, adding that the company is back in action and looking forward to the next few quarters.

Mr. Ved said that the big development in the last quarter has been the stabilization of PM3. The company is expecting the productivity to rise significantly in the coming quarter and subsequently after that as the new expansion and the technology changes stabilize further and provide outputs both in terms of quantity as well as quality. He added that a lot of solidity is coming to the project undertaken and, in line with the Jagriti project, many sections are going to start producing in this quarter, especially the new power plant and the recovery, expected around the end of March or early April.

He further informed that the new paper machine has made significant progress and the company is expecting that in the first quarter of next year there will be significant movement and, if not commissioning, then at least very close to commissioning.

Speaking about overseas operations, Mr. Ved said that the company felt it was too thinly spread in numerous directions and has taken a strategic decision to slow down activities both in the US and Guatemala. He said that there are pending orders and revenue has also come in from the US in the past quarter, and the company will fulfil pending orders. However, there will be a step back before stabilizing the India side first, after which the company will look into both directions. He added that the basic groundwork is in place, but the actual actions might be delayed for the next six months or so.

Mr. Ved also said that optimization of flexible grades remains a key focus. He highlighted significant developments in terms of tie-ups within the country for pushing and creating paper substrates and looking for different operations.

Clarifying on the Guatemala project expansion, Mr. Ved informed that the project being paused is not Jagriti but the Kawok project or the Guatemala project. He said the decision was taken because stabilizing Jagriti is important and the company needs to devote all energy and resources there. Both projects are focused primarily on flexible packaging, which is fundamentally barrier coating and functionalized paper used for different products that are multilayered and long shelf-life products.

He said that the Capex spent in Kawok, including the US expansion, is about USD 4 to 5 million, and the board had restricted the company from going beyond USD 10 million. He added that the company is holding the project steady and a lot of work and effort has already gone into the project.

Talking about the new machine PM-4, Mr. Ved said that there are two kinds of coated or barrier coated papers, metallized and non-metallized. The metallized substrates have been selling in smaller amounts, while the company has been working on non-metallized grades. He said that after trials in England and floating a certain structure in the market, the company has spent a lot of time in the market and observed a significant shift in sustainability commitments.

He added that with the lack of pressure from outside, including customers and government, there has been a step back from companies. The company is working to provide the right structure at the right value to compare it apple to apple with the current polyethylene structures, not BOPP structures.

As far as the Jagriti project is concerned, Mr. Ved said the company is going to start with the base paper, which is grease proof or release paper, similar to butter paper used on top of butter.
 

Published at : May 08, 2026 06:35 AM (IST)

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