Exports already to 10 countries:

Kelani Cables set to conquer Africa

Ravi LADDUWAHETTY

Kelani Cables PLC is well set to conquer the South African market, beginning with South Africa and making inroads into neighbouring eight countries-starting from Botswana, Nigeria and Zimbabwe. The local manufacturer of copper cables already has a brand presence in Rwanda, Uganda and Djibouti.

Mahinda Saranapala

“We will be shortly be entering the South African market through Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town and will be making inroads into neighbouring countries- Botswana, Nigeria and Zimbabwe and leveraging our present brand presence in Rwanda, Uganda and Djibouti, an upbeat Kelani Cables CEO Mahinda Saranapala told Daily News Business.

Saranapala said the company was on a Rs 3.8 billion turnover where the export revenue was Rs 590 million and the sales in the now liberated North and the East was Rs 210 million, which he describes as growing with prospects in growth, fresh and buoyant after three decades of holocaust.

Kelani Cables also hosted a stall in the South African Internation Trade Exhibition (SAITEX) where over 20 South African institutional and retail clients are expected to firm up their inquiries soon.

“There is a huge untapped potential in the South African market as both the quality of the cables manufactured there and also imports from China are low quality and I have already met dealers who supply the households and also the industrial customers who will firm up their orders shortly,” Export Sales Manager Devinda Lorensuhewa said.

Kelani Cables is also exporting the product to other markets in the Maldives, in which it has a strong brand presence along with India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Japan, Seychelles and Mauritius.

Strident in the light of the company using 99.96 percent copper in its wires to maintain pure quality, is the export of its enamel winding wire to discerning Japanese markets and also to Norwegian giant Noratel, a transformer manufacturer, whose exports extends to a majority of European nations.