It is currently scouting for suitable firms in Europe and planning to close the deal some time this year, a top company executive said.
“We have just completed expansion in our instant coffee business by increasing the extraction capacity by 33 per cent to 8,500 tonnes at Theni in Tamil Nadu at an investment of Rs 80 crore (Rs 800 million).
"We are now looking at further expansion through an acquisition, mainly in Europe, which is nearer to our customers,” said Hameed Huq, managing director, Tata Coffee Limited.
He added the company is looking at acquisition as part of its vision to become a Rs 1,000-crore (Rs 10-billion) company by 2015.
For the year ended March 31, the firm recorded 17.7 per cent growth in top line to touch Rs 598 crore (Rs 5.98 billion).
Instant coffee contributes about 55 per cent of its total sales presently.
“To achieve Rs 1,000-crore (Rs 10-billion) turnover, it is essential for us to acquire a company in Europe and we have time till 2015 to achieve this target,” said Huq.
Simultaneously, Tata Coffee is also exploring an option of setting up an instant coffee (also known as freeze-dried coffee) processing unit in Europe with a capacity of 4,500 tonnes, he said, provided an acquisition does not come through.
The company is looking at an investment of close to Rs 400 crore (Rs 4 billion) for the proposed expansion.
“Our strategy is to be present nearer to
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