The Hindu Business Line : Finnish firm Kemira, IVRCL ink pact for water treatment chemical biz

Joint venture:(From right) Mr Hannu Virolainen, Senior Vice-President, Kemira, Mr E. Sudhir Reddy, Chairman and Managing Director of IVRCL Infra and Projects, and Mr Sudip Sarkar, Managing Director, Kemira India, at a press conference in Hyderabad on Monday.

Our Bureau

Hyderabad, Oct. 11

Finnish chemical major Kemira Oyj and the promoters of construction company IVRCL have formed a joint venture to set up a water treatment chemical manufacturing unit near Visakhapatnam with an outlay of Rs 45-50 crore (about $10 million).

The 24-acre site for the manufacturing unit, with an initial capacity of 50,000 tonnes/ annum, has been acquired and the project would be commissioned within eight months. Kemira owns 51 per cent of the venture and IVRCL owns the rest.

In addition, Kemira, Hindustan Dorr-Oliver and IVRCL are forming an alliance to serve the water treatment market, which they believe is poised for significant growth across major towns.

Addressing a press conference, Mr Hannu Virolainen, Senior Vice-President, industrial customer segment, Kemira Oyj, said the venture marks the entry of the $2.5-billion chemicals major into India.

The venture will also trade products of the chemical major.

The Chairman and Managing Director of IVRCL, Mr E. Sudhir Reddy, said: “We sighted an opportunity to play a role in the water treatment and chemicals business, with the former being some sort of backward integration of the business.

The market for water treatment chemicals is estimated to be about $500 million in India and we are looking at a modest sales volume of about Rs 100 crore within two years.”

Kemira established its presence in India in 2008 with a base in Hyderabad and also set up pilot demonstration plants at Patancheru near here that can help simulate projects, Mr Sudip Sarkar, Managing Director of Kemira India, said.

The Finnish company, which has had over 20 acquisitions, has hinted that they were open to more. “Every market we enter, acquisition of companies forms a key aspect of the overall business,” Mr Virolainen added.

Mr Reddy said that water treatment projects, both industrial and residential projects within cities, offer immense scope for growth. This business will play an important role in this growth phase, he added.