Tata Chemicals to invest Rs 565 cr to set up units in Andhra,Guj

Tata Chemicals will invest Rs 565 crore to set up two facilities in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat to manufacture soluble dietary fibres and silica.

The board had yesterday approved the investments.

"The Board of Directors approved an investment in the nutritional solutions business of Rs 270 crore for setting up of a state-of-the-art, biotechnology unit in Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh for manufacturing of soluble dietary fibres with cutting-edge health benefits," the company said in a filing to the BSE.

The company had signed an MoU on January 27 with Andhra Pradesh government in this regard.

"These products have been developed entirely through in-house R&D efforts at the company's innovation Centre in Pune and will serve demanding and critical segments such as Early Life Nutrition (infant nutrition) and medical foods," the company said.

The board also approved an investment of Rs 295 crore for setting up of a plant to manufacture precipitated highly dispersible silica in Gujarat.

This speciality chemical represents downstream value addition to the company's soda ash business.

The technology for manufacturing highly dispersible silica has been developed in-house at its innovation centre in Pune and seven patents have already been filed.

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

"The proposed investments are in line with the company's strategy on transformation journey by focusing on building businesses with technology enabled differentiation and brands through greater customer centricity," the company said.

Tata Chemicals is engaged in the business of salt, chemicals and fertilisers. It also sells branded pulses and spices as well as water purifier.