MUMBAI, India—Indian Oil Corp. Ltd. has announced plans to build a 60 metric kiloton-per-annum (ktpa) polybutadiene rubber (PBR) plant at its existing naphtha cracker complex in Panipat, north of Delhi.
In a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange March 16, the Indian state-owned company said it would be investing $174 million (Rs 14.6 billion) in the new facility.
Set for operation by 2025, the plant will use technology provided by Goodyear, the filing added.
The company said it will source the feedstock butadiene to produce PBR from the 138 ktpa butadiene extraction unit (BDEU) at the Panipat complex.
Indian Oil said the decision to build the new plant was made in view of "the present deficit" in PBR production in India and "the steadily growing demand."
"The demand-supply deficit is expected to grow considerably in the future," the company said in its statement.
The tire industry, it added, consumes more than 80 percent of PBR in India, with the remaining 20 percent going to industries such as footwear and conveyor belts.