PCBL starts commercial production at Rs 800 crore plant in TN

KOLKATA: Phillips Carbon Black Ltd (PCBL), a part of RP Sanjiv Goenka Group, on Friday announced the commencement of commercial production at its Rs 800-crore greenfield carbon black project in Tamil Nadu.

After completing the first phase of the facility with a manufacturing capacity of 63,000 tonne per annum, the company expressed confidence in achieving a peak rate of production with the start of the second stage of the total 1,47,000-tonne-per-annum project within the current fiscal year.

The greenfield project is being executed by PCBL (TN) Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company.

“The first phase of production has started. We are aiming at commencing the second phase within this fiscal,” a senior company official said on condition of anonymity.

The cost of the project is around Rs 650 crore for 147,000-tonne carbon black manufacturing and Rs 150 crore for the 24 MW captive power plant.

Located close to Krishnapatnam and Ennore ports, the Tamil Nadu facility enables easy import of raw materials and exports of finished goods, the official said.

The project location was selected based on multiple strategic reasons, apart from subsidies, he said.

PCBL’s total capital expenditure for the 31 MW green power in Tamil Nadu and Kochi facilities and 40,000 tonne per annum speciality carbon at Mundra in Gujarat is estimated to be Rs 1,200 crore, he said.

The company has been continuously raising its speciality carbon black items in the total product mix to improve profitability, the official said.

R&D centres have also been established in Palej in Gujarat and also in Belgium to expand into new product segments and categories, the company had said earlier.

Tamil Nadu plant is fully automated and equipped with sustainable processes, it said.

PCBL has a total carbon black manufacturing capacity of 6,03,000 tonne and 91 MW of total green power.

It has manufacturing facilities in Durgapur in West Bengal, Mundra and Palej in Gujarat, and Kochi in Kerela.