RIL set to expand capacity of chemical compounds
Reliance Industries Ltd, country's largest petrochemical firm, plans to raise capacity to become world's fourth largest producer of chemical compounds used in manufacture of plastics by 2008.
By PTI |
MUMBAI: Reliance Industries Ltd, country's largest petrochemical firm, plans to raise capacity to become world's fourth largest producer of chemical compounds used in manufacture of plastics by 2008.
The company in April 2006 expanded the capacity of polypropylene plant at Jamnagar by 280,000 tonnes a year and will commission a new 900,000 tonnes a year unit at the new export-oriented refinery of its subsidiary Reliance Petroleum Ltd by 2008.
"Reliance would then emerge as the fourth largest producer of polypropylene in the world," RIL Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani said at the company's Annual General Meeting here.
Expanding its petrochemical business, the company is implementing a new 140,000 tonnes a year butadiene manufacturing facility at Hazira and is expanding the paraxylene plant at Jamnagar by 310,000 tones per year, he said.
Additional capacity of 270,000 tonnes of benzene is being created at Jamnagar by deploying a new generation catalyst.
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"With an unmatched access to competitive feedstock’s, growing markets and strong competitive position, Reliance is well placed to grow rapidly and globally in the petrochemical business," he said.Reliance, which recently commissioned 550,000 tonnes a year polyester capacity, is putting on stream a 730,000 tonnes per year Purified Terephthalic Acid plant at Hazira, he said.
PTA is used in manufacture of polyester yarn.
"This expansion takes the polyester capacity under the control of Reliance to 2 million tones per year," he said.
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Reliance, Ambani said, is now building the new generation polyester business. "From meeting needs of the textile industry, Reliance will also move to providing solutions to the packaging, paper and consruction industries. In addition to making apparel grade polyesters, Reliance will develop a whole range of technical and performance polyesters."He said Reliance had 4 per cent of global capacity and 6 per cent of global production share in polyester.
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On the fibre intermediates front, Reliance continues to invest aggressively to keep pace with polyester capacity expansions."As I speak to you here, my colleagues are engaged in commissioning a 730,000 tones per year PTA plant at Hazira. This plant will be in commercial production in the next few weeks," he said.
"Our aim is to sustain the global leadership position of Reliance in the polyester business not only on manufacturing, but also on diversity in end use sector, geographic presence and product innovation," he added.
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