Bhubaneswar

Aluminium major NALCO today launched a joint venture with Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited (GACL) to set up a caustic soda plant at an investment of Rs 1,800 crore, an official source said.

The two firms will come together to set up a caustic soda plant at Dahej in Gujarat. NALCO CMD T K Chand today laid the foundation stone of the proposed plant, a release here said.

The new JV company GACL-NALCO Alkalies & Chemicals Private Limited, in which NALCO holds 40 per cent 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, it said adding that 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.

The availability of caustic soda in the country is very low and the major part of the domestic requirement is met at a high cost. The venture will bring in import substitution of caustic soda in domestic market, Chand said.

Besides, NALCO is also in the process of setting up a 0.5 million tonnes per annum Alumina Refinery in Kutch district of Gujarat in joint venture with Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC), a Gujarat government undertaking.

The Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been prepared, the official said.

PTI