Carbon black makers expand in India

Mumbai, India - Two separate announcements wil lead to more carbon black being made in India in the near future.

In announcing its annual results, Aditya Birla confirmed that its Thai Carbon Black unit will bring on stream a 60 kt/year brown-field expansion in June 2007 and that it is in the process of buying land on which to construct a 120 kt/year greenfield project in Western India.

In a second announcement, Philips Carbon Black (PCBL), owned by the RPG Group said it is expanding production by 125 kt/year, bringing total production to 395 kt/year.

PCBL said it will build a new plant in Mundhra, Gujarat. The new plant will have capacity for 75 kt/year, but will be capable of expansion. RPG vice-chairman Sanjiv Goenka did not say when the unit would be on stream.

He did, say, however, that Phillips Carbon is looking to expand out of India, and is studying possible acquisitions or joint ventures in Asia or eastern Europe.

PCBL is also adding 50 kt/year capacity at its Kochi unit, bringing capacitry there to 85 kt/year. PCBL will spend around Rs 2150 million (€39 million) on the new plant at Mundhra and a further Rs 1350 million (€24 million) at Kochi.

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Press release from Aditya Birla

PCBL plans global expansion Times of India (India)

Phillips Carbon plans expansion Telegraph (India)