Vedanta rolls out scheme for MSMEs under 'Saathi' programme

Vedanta Limited, Indias leading producer of metals and oil & gas, has rolled out an attractive promotional scheme for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the manufacturing industry in celebration of the World MSME Week.

Under the company's Vedanta Saathi programme, MSMEs can avail a discount of Rs 500 per tonne on the first 500 tonnes of purchase in Aluminium, Zinc, Lead, Silver, Steel and Pig Iron, on first come first served basis. The scheme will be live for this week, ending on July 3, 2021.

For eligibility, MSMEs must have manufacturing operations in the metals business, with an actual manufacturing setup and must possess Udyog Aadhaar Number (UAN) and Registration Certificate. To avail the scheme and get full details, interested MSMEs can register on the Vedanta Saathi website and send an enquiry to [email protected], following which Vedanta's sales teams will reach out to them.

With a significant MSME customer and supplier base, Vedanta has been fostering the MSME ecosystem for over two decades through its expansive value-chain, supply-chain, and social-developmental programmes. Under Vedanta Saathi programme, the company offers various schemes, incentives, and opportunities for MSMEs, such as: Channel financing at attractive rates and fast disbursement, in partnership with a host of leading banks, NBFCs and FinTech firms; soon to be launched e-commerce solutions for an agile, easy, and transparent way of buying from Vedanta's entire bouquet of high-quality value-added products, with doorstep delivery through micro-logistics partners.

Besides, avenues for technical upskilling with access to the company's wide community of research institutes, industry associations, in house and external global expert; opportunities for MSMEs to set up d downstream/ancillary manufacturing units near Vedanta's plants, with benefits like just-in-time delivery of raw material (hot metal supplies), low working capital and capex involvement and single window for MSMEs to interact with Vedanta's Quality, Product Application, Engineering, and Innovation teams through a dedicated web portal

Speaking about Vedanta Saathi, Ajay Kapur, CEO – Aluminium & Power and MD – Commercial, Vedanta Ltd., said, "Post pandemic, we have been seeing significant restructuring in the global supply chain, as companies look to diversify their supply and service networks. This offers our MSMEs a huge opportunity to tap into the new markets with access to new-age technologies, opportunities to upskill, and quality raw materials.

Besides getting integrated into these global supply chains, it will also improve MSME's share of contribution to GDP which stands at only 7% now. Under Vedanta Saathi we have developed various initiatives that can help MSMEs accelerate this growth journey."

Till date, more than 150 MSMEs customers have availed channel financing to access a credit limit of Rs 1,000 crore by leading banks and NBFCs. Vedanta is committed to grow this limit by 5x for MSME customers, adding more banks and NBFCs to its fold.

The company's upcoming e-commerce offerings shall offer significant advantages for MSMEs like live pricing options, direct buy access to a diverse product portfolio with no bar on quantity, as well as easy delivery tracking and micro-logistics.

Vedanta also offers a ready community of industry associations, technical experts, and research institutes for collaboration with MSMEs to engineer new products, product applications and new markets for those applications, helping upskill MSMEs to match global standards.

The company has dedicated teams to cater to customers' requirements in quality, product application and engineering.

With the aim to bolster India's vision of becoming a global manufacturing hub, Vedanta also offers opportunities for MSMEs to set up their ancillaries and downstream manufacturing facilities near its plants.

Besides immensely benefiting MSMEs in terms of just-in-time access to raw materials, low working capital and capex involvement, and proximity to Vedanta's Quality teams and expert network, it will also aid in significant employment generation locally and bring about a positive transformation in the quality of life of local communities.