Synopsis: India’s metal recycling sector showcased contrasting growth models in FY26. One company reported Rs.2,939 crore in revenue through a lead-focused, export-oriented business, while another generated Rs.4,265 crore backed by a diversified recycling platform across multiple metals, business verticals, and international markets. The comparison highlights focused specialization versus diversified scale in the recycling industry.
India’s waste management story is finally getting the attention it deserves. As battery demand from automotive and energy storage applications accelerates, the scrap metal that flows back into the economy becomes enormously valuable. Two listed recyclers are positioned to capture this cycle, both rooted in lead but diverging sharply in ambition, scale, and where they want to be by the end of the decade.
FY26 Financials: How Both Companies Performed
Pondy Oxides delivered its best-ever year in FY26, with standalone revenue rising 45 percent year-on-year to Rs.2,939 crore. EBITDA more than doubled to Rs.218 crore, taking margins from 5.3 percent to 7.4 percent. PAT grew 113 percent to Rs.139 crore, with PAT margins expanding to 4.7 percent. The year was powered by copper segments simultaneously recording their highest-ever production and sales volumes, with copper production volumes surging over 600% year-on-year, supported by the company successfully doubling its physical copper recycling capacity to 12,000 MTPA, and the ROCE stood at 17 percent.
Gravita India posted consolidated revenue of Rs.4,265 crore for FY26, up 10 percent year-on-year. EBITDA grew 12 percent, and PAT rose 21 percent to Rs.379 crore, while the company sustained a return on invested capital of approximately 24 percent. Volume growth of 5 percent was underpinned by a higher share of value-added products and increased domestic scrap sourcing.
Gravita also incurred capex of approximately Rs.372 crore during the year, commissioned a 6,000 MTPA lithium-ion battery recycling plant at Mundra, and expanded its Mundra lead recycling capacity by 80,300 MTPA to 145,100 MTPA.
Where the Two Models Diverge
Pondy Oxides is built around four recycling verticals: lead, copper, plastics, and aluminum, with lead accounting for the dominant share of revenue. Its total lead capacity stands at 204,000 MTPA across plants in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, with its Thervoykandigai unit recently adding a significant 72,000 MTPA.
The copper recycling capacity successfully doubled to 12,000 metric tons per annum (MTPA) in Q4 FY26. The board has approved a new 36,000 MTPA copper cathode plant to be set up at the company’s TKD facility in Tamil Nadu. This project will be implemented in two 18,000 MTPA phases, with the first phase targeted for commissioning by December 2026 POCL’s sales mix is export-heavy at 66 percent, with clients spanning battery OEMs, automotive and cable manufacturers across the Middle East, Asia, and Europe.
Gravita India operates at a different level of ambition entirely. With six recycling verticals lead, aluminum, plastics, rubber, copper via the newly acquired Rashtriya Metal Industries (RMIL), and now lithium-ion batteries it is building what its management describes as an integrated multi-material recycling platform.
Gravita acquired a near-full stake in RMIL for Rs. 562 crore during FY26, gaining a 31,200 MTPA copper facility in Gujarat with established defence and electrical segment customers. Its procurement network spans 2,200-plus global touchpoints and 39 owned yards.
FY27 Growth Triggers: What Could Drive Growth Ahead?
Pondy Oxides’ near-term growth will come from the commissioning of copper cathode production at TDK, the continued ramp-up of TKD Phase 2, and a capex plan of Rs.180 crore for FY27. The company is also targeting lithium-ion battery recycling as a feasibility stage. initiative under its portfolio roadmap, alongside rubber and e-waste in pre-feasibility. Its Target 2030 framework calls for 20 percent-plus revenue CAGR, EBITDA margins above 8 percent, and ROCE above 20 percent.
Gravita’s forward triggers are more concrete and already in motion. RMIL integration brings copper revenue immediately into the consolidated picture. The lithium-ion plant at Mundra is commissioned and operational. Gravita targets total capacity exceeding 8 lakh MTPA by FY29 and has guided for 20 to 25 percent volume CAGR alongside 30 to 35 percent profitability growth through its Vision 2030 framework.
Investor Overview
POCL is the faster-growing story right now, with FY26 representing a genuine earnings inflection. But it remains a smaller, lead-heavy recycler still building out its diversification thesis. Gravita is the more complete platform with broader verticals, global operations, earlier entry into lithium-ion, and a far larger market share in the core lead recycling business. For investors betting on India’s battery recycling decade, Gravita offers the purer and more scalable play. POCL offers upside too, but from a smaller base and at an earlier stage of the same transition.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on tradebrains.in are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Investing in equities poses a risk of financial losses. Investors must therefore exercise due caution while investing or trading in stocks. Trade Brains Technologies Private Limited or the author are not liable for any losses caused as a result of the decision based on this article. Please consult your investment advisor before investing.
