Tata Chemicals to acquire Allied Silica for Rs 123 cr

Tata Chemicals entered into a business transfer agreement with Allied Silica to acquire their business of precipitated silica for Rs 123 crore on a slump sale basis.

The acquisition is a part of the Rs 295 crore investment approved by the Board during February 2017 towards this speciality business and the deal is expected to be closed within three months, Tata Chemicals said in a statement.

"Tata Chemicals entered into a Business Transfer Agreement with Allied Silica Ltd to acquire their business of precipitated silica for a consideration of Rs 123 crores, on a slump sale basis," it said.

The agreement includes the acquisition of an existing manufacturing site in Tamil Nadu, which will produce highly dispersible silica (HDS).

The speciality chemical product represents a downstream value addition to Tata Chemicals' soda ash business, where it ranks among the top manufacturers globally.

R Mukundan, Managing Director, Tata Chemicals said, "This is in line with our focus to grow our speciality business, along with our consumer business".

Precipitated silica is a versatile product with applications in many industries, including rubber, oral care, coatings and agrochemicals, he said.

"The acquisition also offers the possibility to make value added silica in the future for applications that demand high performance," Mukundan added.

The technology for manufacturing HDS, for which eight patents have already been filed, has been developed at the company's innovation centre in Pune.

A part of the over USD 100 billion Tata Group, Tata Chemicals Limited is a global company with interests in businesses that focus on LIFE living, industrial and farm essentials.