GACL to expand its total caustic soda capacity

India’s Gujarat Alkalies & Chemicals Ltd (GACL) expects its total caustic soda capacity to reach more than 850,000 tonnes/year by year end from the current 412,500, said the company.

GACL expects to commission the caustic soda expansion project at its Dahej complex in western Gujarat state by October 2022, the source said. The expansion project will raise GACL’s caustic soda capacity at the site to 432,300 tonnes/year. from 259,050 tonne/year currently. The planned expansion was approved in 2019.

GACL initially expected to begin operations at the brownfield expansion project in the fiscal year ending March 2022. Meanwhile, the company also expects to fully commission a new 266,667 tonne/year caustic soda plant of its joint venture GACL-NALCO Alkalies & Chemicals Ltd (GNAL) by December 2022, the company source said.

The GNAL project at Dahej, is a joint venture project between state-owned firms GACL and National Aluminium Co Ltd (NALCO). In April, GNAL partially commissioned a 70,000 tonnes/year caustic evaporation unit which forms part of the greenfield caustic soda project. Once operational, the two caustic soda projects will help the company cater to domestic demand as well as export markets, the company source said.

Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Ltd (GACL) had earlier informed about updates on GACL-NALCO Alkalies & Chemicals Private Limited (GNAL), a Joint Venture Company between GACL and National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) formed to set up 800 TPD Caustic Soda Plant along with 130 MW Captive Power Plant at Dahej.
GNAL is a material subsidiary of the company.

Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited (GACL), incorporated in Mar 1973, is a state-owned chemical manufacturing unit. GACL is one of the largest producers of Caustic Soda in India, with a production capacity of over 1400 TPD at their two complexes eg. Dahej and Vadodara. GACL has also its subsidiary company viz. GACL-NALCO Alkalies and Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. (GNAL) putting up an 800 TPD Caustic Soda Plant together with 130 MW Thermal Power Plant (coal-based) at Dahej.