June startup for Reliance PP

29 April 1996 00:00  [Source: ACN]

RELIANCE Industries has delayed the startup of its polypropylene plant in Hazira, Gujarat, until the end of June as it is unwilling to pay US$640-650/tonne cfr India for propylene feedstock, Lalit Jalan, Reliance's senior executive vice-president for PP group told ACN.

Reliance expected to start the plant in May, but has found it difficult to source sufficient monomer ahead of the startup of its cracker. 'We hope the propylene price will come down in June,' Jalan said.

Reliance has imported deep-sea ethylene for some time and anticipates no problems with propylene imports. The company has built a separate jetty for unloading propylene. It has a 10 000-tonne storage tank.

The initial propylene requirement is about 20 000 tonne/month for the 240 000 tonne/year PP plant. However, capacity will be lifted to 350 000 tonne/year during the first year of operation.

The cracker will have an initial propylene capacity of 250 000 tonne/year and will eventually supply all of the PP unit's feedstock requirement.

Reliance expects to start the cracker in September this year and plans to lift propylene production to 365 000 tonne/year during the first year of operation. The cracker's ethylene capacity will be similarly hiked from an initial 500 000 tonne/year to 750 000 tonne/year.

The PP plant is mechanically complete and the company has already begun testing some parts of the plant such as the bagging unit, Jalan said.

Reliance plans to sell PP in the domestic market initially where imported PP carries a 40% duty but will start exporting by the end of the year.

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