Reliance Industries plans to set up a 1.5 MTPA PVC and CPVC facilities by FY 2026-27

Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is planning to set up polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) manufacturing facilities at its existing locations in Dahej and Nagothane with a cumulative production capacity of 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). These integrated facilities are expected to commence commercial production in the financial year (FY) 2026-27.

Addressing shareholders at RIL’s 47th Annual General Meeting on Thursday, the company’s Chairman Mukesh Ambani, stated, “Our new integrated facilities in the Vinyl value chain will add 1.5 MMTPA of PVC and CPVC at Dahej and Nagothane by the year 2026-27. India's consumption of petrochemicals and polyester is expected to exhibit healthy growth across sectors such as consumer goods, infrastructure, automotive, packaging, and agriculture, driven by the rapid expansion of our domestic manufacturing base. To meet this growing demand, we are adding capacities across both existing and new chemical value chains.”

RIL is the largest producer of petrochemicals in India and is amongst the top ten globally. With a unique portfolio of business-to-business (B2B) spanning polymer and polyester chains, it is one of the world’s largest producers of polymers, with a current capacity of approximately 5.8 MTPA. RIL operates world-scale plants for polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), utilizing state-of-the-art technology, and setting global benchmarks in product quality and services.

The company’s current PVC production capacity stands at 750,000 tonnes per annum, accounting for half of India’s overall capacity. The country’s demand for PVC and CPVC is growing rapidly due to the government's focus on infrastructure development and rising aspirations of people towards modern lifestyles. India’s total PVC demand is currently estimated at 3.7 MTPA.

Reliance offers a wide range of grades for diverse applications across sectors such as packaging, agriculture, automotive, healthcare, transportation, infrastructure and consumer durables and these products are exported to more than 60 countries worldwide. With superior technological strength, strong focus on research and development (R&D), information technology (IT)-enabled services to support supply chain management and end-to-end solutions, it serves the customers across the globe.

Polyester capacity additions
RIL is also adding a million tonnes of specialty polyester capacity by the year 2026-27, which will be further integrated backwards with a 3 million tonne PTA capacity by 2027. As demand for traditional polymers continues to grow, India will also require new and versatile materials. Reliance is building India's first world-class integrated Carbon Fibre plant at Hazira, which will rank among the top three units globally. The company continues to expand its portfolio of composites of Carbon Fibre for use in the infrastructure sector.

In addition to expanding capacities and developing new materials, we remain focused on enhancing our global feedstock sourcing and improving our supply chain. We are adding three more Very Large Ethane Carriers (VLECs) to our existing fleet of six ethane carriers used for sourcing ethane from North America.

Accelerating use of green energy
Sustainability continues to be a key element in RIL’s O2C business. Reliance is accelerating the use of renewable energy and is well on its way to becoming one of the largest users of renewable energy in India. Additionally, the company is making significant progress on various sustainability initiatives, including PET recycling, chemical recycling of plastics to produce pyrolysis oil, polyolefin recycling, conversion of hazardous waste into alternative fuels and raw materials and the development of zero-waste stores.

“Reliance already recycles over 2 billion PET bottles in India and is on track to reach a capacity of 5 billion bottles per annum by next year. In summary, I would like to reiterate that our Oil to Chemicals business continues to be a robust growth engine, steadily enhancing its financial performance for a long time to come. We are actively investing in new capacities and capabilities to meet the demand growth in India,” said Ambani.

A few years ago, the company undertook a strategic restructuring of its oil refining and chemicals segments, merging them into an integrated Oil to Chemicals business. This pivotal move has significantly enhanced the operational excellence, fortified supply chain, and ensured resilient financial performance in an industry highly vulnerable to its volatility and cyclical nature.

Over the past year, RIL, like other global players, faced a complex global landscape, characterised by geopolitical conflicts and weak economic growth in Western countries, leading to subdued demand. On the supply side, large-scale capacity additions, particularly in China, created a surplus, causing significant fluctuations in fuel and downstream chemical margins, with some dropping to multi-year lows.

Despite these challenges, Reliance navigated through the headwinds to deliver industry leading performance. The O2C business achieved revenues of Rs 5,64,749 crore (US$67.9 billion) and an EBITDA of Rs 62,393 crore (US$7.5 billion) in FY 2023-24. This robust performance was made possible through maintaining sharp focus on operational excellence, sourcing of source advantageous feedstock from diverse and complex geographies, and chartering more vessels on a long-term basis to overcome the missile attacks in the Red Sea.

Segment-wise capacity expansions
In the area of polymers, RIL produced new grades for plastic fuel tanks, making them safer and lighter, leading to lower fuel consumption in vehicles. In chemicals, the company commissioned a new column to enhance capacity of Ethylene Oxide by 45,000 tonnes per annum, increasing its capacity by 15 percent and increasing profitability

In polyesters, RIL integrated polyester capacities through strategic acquisitions, making it among the top spinners in the country and completing the only missing element in its textiles value chain. Reliance is now the largest producer of specialty fibres in India, with applications in mobility, home furnishings, and industrial uses.


DILIP KUMAR JHA
Editor
dilip.jha@polymerupdate.com