The National Aluminium Company limited (Nalco) and the Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals limited (GACl), a Gujarat Government-promoted company, have launched a joint venture to set up a Rs 1,800-crire caustic soda plant. Nalco CMD Tapan Kumar Chand laid the foundation-stone of the in Gujarat on Tuesday.
The JV company GACl-Nalco Alkalies & Chemicals Private limited, in which Nalco holds 40% share capital while GACl holds the rest, plans to produce 2.7 lakh tonnes of caustic soda per annum. The land transfer and ordering of plant equipment are in the final stages. The office of the new company was also inaugurated today in Baroda.
“As a backward integration plan of Nalco, the project is expected to be a highly profitable venture for us. Nalco shall purchase at least 50,000 tonnes of caustic soda per year to start with at market price,” Chand informed.
Notably, the availability of caustic soda in India is very low and the major part of the domestic requirement is met at a high cost. The venture would bring in import substitution of caustic soda in the domestic market.
The Nalco is also in the process of setting up a 0.5-million tonne-per-annum alumina refinery in Kutch district of Gujarat in joint venture with the Gujarat
Mineral Development Corporation. A detailed project report (DPR) for the project has been prepared.