Following the successful market entries of B2C businesses Birla Opus and Indriya, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, is recalibrating the conglomerate’s strategic engine toward a massive expansion of industrial capacity and an operational revival in telecom. Reflecting on a tenure that last year crossed the 30-year milestone, Birla’s latest annual outlook emphasises a decisive $6-billion investment in Hindalco’s upstream metals business and a shift from survival to growth for Vodafone Idea.  

In his statement, titled "My Reflections," Birla said, "We are now moving decisively once again to invest in upstream capacity. Over the next five years, we plan to deploy approximately $6 billion across aluminium and copper upstream in India, reinforcing our position as a leading global metals company." 

Hindalco

Hindalco, the metals flagship of the $67 billion group, recently announced a major expansion of its aluminium operations in Odisha with a ₹21,000-crore investment. The 3.6-lakh-tonne-per-annum smelter expansion at its Aditya Aluminium complex in Sambalpur and a battery-grade aluminium foil manufacturing facility with an investment of ₹4,500 crore are part of the plan. After the expansion, Hindalco’s EBITDA could double from ₹18,000–20,000 crore, said Satish Pai, MD of Hindalco, in a recent interview with Fortune India. 

Vodafone

Addressing the telecom business, which has faced two decades of volatility, Birla struck a definitive tone regarding Vodafone Idea revival. After navigating a "protracted period of uncertainty," he believes the resolution of the AGR issue and government intervention have fundamentally altered the landscape. "The recent resolution of the AGR issue marks a decisive turning point," Birla stated. "For the first time in years, the fog has cleared, allowing the business to look beyond survival and focus on sustainable growth." He maintains that a "dogged focus on daily operations, service, and network expansion" will serve as the foundation for the carrier's revival. 

In a strategic move to stabilise the telecom sector, the central government has frozen Vodafone Idea’s Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) liabilities at ₹87,695 crore. Under a Cabinet-approved relief package, the operator is granted a deferred payment window, with instalments scheduled between FY32 and FY41. Simultaneously, following Supreme Court mandates from late 2025, officials have launched a formal reassessment of the company’s total debt. 

UltraTech

In the cement business, Birla had earlier set a 200 million tonne target. UltraTech scaled its capacity from 60 million tonne to over 190 million tonne per annum in the last decade. This expansion has established UltraTech as the largest cement company by sales volume in the world, outside China, said Birla. The growth of the Indian economy also mirrored in Birla's financial services business. The loan book of Aditya Birla Capital grew from ₹17,000 crore to nearly ₹1.5 lakh crore in just a decade. 

While the Group was historically focused on B2B spaces, Birla highlighted how India’s growth path presented "compelling opportunities" in consumption. This led to massive investments in Birla Opus paints, Indriya jewellery retail, and Birla Pivot B2B e-commerce. Birla noted that the transition has been bolstered by the group's reputation. "It has been particularly striking to see how trust in the Aditya Birla brand has translated into consumer affinity across these businesses," he said, describing the brand as a "hidden superpower."