Hyderabad: Specialty chemicals maker Vishnu Chemicals Ltd (VCL) has signed a definitive agreement with France’s DCX Chrome SAS to form a 50:50 joint venture that will build a greenfield high-purity chromium metal plant in Visakhapatnam, marking the Hyderabad-based company’s entry into aerospace-grade materials.The JV plant, planned near VCL’s existing chrome facility and Visakhapatnam port, will have installed capacity of 6,000 metric tonnes per annum.The material is used in superalloys for aircraft engines, defence platforms, nuclear power equipment, land-based gas turbines, oil and gas drilling systems, chemical process equipment and other high-temperature or corrosion-resistant applications.The venture, DCX Vishnu Private Ltd, will involve a proposed investment of $20 million, with each partner contributing $10 million, Vishnu Chemicals joint managing director Siddartha Cherukuri told TOI.Under the shareholder arrangement, the managing director and chief financial officer will be nominated by DCX, which will run operations and lead global marketing of the product, while VCL will get equal board representation, including the positions of chairperson and director, Cherukuri said.While DCX Chrome, which is a part of France’s Delachaux Group, will bring its proprietary aluminothermic process technology, product development expertise and strict quality systems to the venture, VCL will supply chrome oxide green, the key raw material, drawing on its chromium chemistry expertise, operational capabilities and position in the chromium value chain.DCX Chrome CEO Fernando Accioly said the venture combines DCX’s technology and over 80 years of industrial expertise with VCL’s operational strength.The companies said though the project will be largely focused on exports, it will also create a domestic source of high-purity chromium metal for aerospace, defence and energy sectors, where demand in India is currently largely met through imports.DCX Chrome is a pioneer in high-purity aluminothermic chromium metal and specialised chromium powders, with longstanding approvals and relationships with aerospace, defence, energy, superalloy and welding customers worldwide.Cherukuri said VCL is backward integrated through chrome ore mining and processing assets in South Africa and chromium chemical manufacturing in India, with debottlenecking creating enough raw material capacity to meet the new unit’s present and future requirements.VCL, which produces chromium, barium and strontium chemicals, operates four facilities in Andhra Pradesh, one each in Telangana, Chhattisgarh and South Africa, and a Hyderabad R&D centre.
