PETpla.net Insider 03 / 2020

MATERIALS / RECYCLING PET planet Insider Vol. 21 No. 03/20 www.petpla.net 12 Producing PET resin within a ‘greenbelt’ by Michael Maruschke The Dhunseri Group has been a major player in the Indian tea market for over 50 years. Until 2002, it was engaged solely in the growing and production of tea. It then branched out into other markets, including the petrochemical industry. In 2003, the company began production of PET resin. In order to have a better international sales coverage and access to PET raw materials, it decided to enter a 50:50 joint venture with Indorama Ventures in 2015. The company, which is now known as IVL Dhunseri, operates two factories in India: one in the port town of Haldia, West Bengal; and the other in the district of Karnal, Haryana. Installed capacity of 700,000 tonnes/year makes IVL Dhunseri the second largest PET resin producer in India. IVL Dhunseri Petrochem Industries Pvt. Ltd. May 2019 We met: Mr B. Chattopadhyay, CEO, Mr Pankaj Kr. Sinha, Marketing Head India We visited the facility in Haldia, which actually consists of two plants. The first plant, which commissioned in 2003, employs Zimmer polymer technology to produce the PET resin and the second, which started opera- tions in 2012, uses Oerlikon Barmag technology. Both plants can be con- sidered among the most advanced PET resin manufacturing facilities in the world. Ethylene glycol is supplied by Sabic/Meglobal and transported to the plant via an 8 km pipeline directly from the city’s port, while the tereph- thalic acid (TPA) is supplied by MCC PTA India Corp Pvt Ltd (MCPI) from its production site located just 6 km away. Certifications in place - worldwide export The company’s product range consists mainly of bottle and jar grade PET resins, with about eight per cent sheet grades. New and special- ised PET grades are under continu- ous development; a dedicated resin composition for the popular 20 l (five gallon) PET containers being an example. It features one of the highest IV (intrinsic viscosity) currently avail- able and can be used for the produc- tion of preforms with wall thicknesses greater than 5mm. IVL Dhunseri’s Haldia facility is one of the plants within the Indorama group that has received quality cer- tifications from several national and international agencies, such as US FDA, European FC, Japanese and Canadian Food and Health Bodies, and from multinational brands such as Pepsi. Consequently, 50% of its PET resin production is exported, under the Ramapet brand, to over 42 coun- tries worldwide. Within its domestic market, the material is distributed under the Aspet brand to about 280 customers across India. Factory with fruit garden The Haldia plant has its own fire station (which also provides emer- gency service for the local com- munity); its own health facility for employees; and a ‘greenbelt’, with a fruit garden and a temple shrine. The plants and surrounding facilities are powered by two coal-fired power plants, which have 10MW and 8MW capacities. Diesel generators are installed as a back-up. Egyptian project IVL Dhunseri also operates a 540,000 t/a PET facility in the Ain Sokhna Free Trade Zone, North West of the Gulf of Suez in Egypt. This facil- ity is one of the largest in the Middle East and Africa and is well placed to meet the increasing demand for PET resin in MEA region. www.ivldhunseri.com Tour Sponsors: F.l.t.r.: Pankaj Kr. Sinha, B. Chattopadhyay and Michael Maruschke View of the Haldia plant from above