Lubrizol, Grasim Industries tie up to set up India’s largest CPVC resin plant

Specialty chemical maker Lubrizol Advanced Materials has entered into an agreement with Aditya Birla Group flagship Grasim Industries Limited to manufacture and supply chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) resin in India. As part of the deal, Grasim will have a 100,000 metric tonne CPVC plant at its manufacturing facility in Vilayat, Gujarat.

The proposed facility will be the largest single-site capacity for CPVC resin production globally. 

Growing need for clean water in residential and commercial buildings across India is expected to drive the growth in the CPVC market in India, which is already one of the largest consumers of the product. CPVC is primarily used in the form of plumbing pipe and fittings.

The project will take part in two phases, with the first phase of production expected to be operational in late 2022. The CPVC resin produced at Vilayat will enable product sold under Lubrizol’s FlowGuard Plus, Corzan and BlazeMaster brands.

To further support the local market, Lubrizol will make additional investments in the coming years to expand its existing CPVC compound plant in Dahej, Gujarat and establish a local innovation center as demand continues to grow.

Lubrizol is the inventor and largest manufacturer of CPVC resin and CPVC compounds worldwide. With billions of feet installed globally, Lubrizol’s CPVC solutions enable long-lasting systems and reliable access to clean, safe drinking water to millions of homes, in alignment with the company’s mission to help the world live better, an official statement said.

To date, Lubrizol products have been instrumental in delivering safer water to some 200 million citizens in South Asia. The company said it has plans to introduce other advanced water management solutions in India.

“This alliance will help Lubrizol better serve our customers in India and South Asia, as well as support the Indian economy,” said Lubrizol Advanced Materials Vice President (South Asia) Arnau Pano.

“Connecting with Grasim Industries Limited, a reputable global conglomerate, who share our commitment to sustainable chemical production, will allow us to provide our customers with increased, reliable CPVC supply and further our goal of improving access to clean, safe drinking water for millions of global citizens through the advantages offered by FlowGuard Plus plumbing solutions”, Pano said.

With this investment to supply resin to its existing compounding plant in Dahej, Lubrizol becomes the only company in India with end-to-end CPVC capability. In addition to its regional manufacturing capabilities, Lubrizol continues to strengthen its customer network, collaborating with local leaders like Ashirvad Pipes, an Aliaxis company, and Prince Pipes to ensure robust distribution in India and South Asia. 

As part of its regional support, Lubrizol is also committed to the ongoing development of plumbers in India, having trained nearly 100,000 local plumbers on installation of advanced plumbing systems.

“This collaboration with Lubrizol Advanced Materials is part of our long-term direction to bring in world-class technologies to India and additionally complements our growth strategy in chlor-alkali and derivatives platform,” said Aditya Birla Group CEO (Global Chemicals) & Group Business Head (Fertilisers & Insulators) Kalyan Ram Madabhushi.

“The collaboration will support the ‘Make in India’ initiative and is expected to create local jobs and downstream opportunities.”

The collaboration will also enable Aditya Birla Group and Lubrizol to explore joint opportunities across additional segments, such as water management, construction, textiles, automotive and piping by leveraging their common technologies and market channels.