Bharuch & Louvain-la-Neuve—India’s Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd. (GNFC) and EcoPhos SA, Belgium, have signed a joint venture agreement to build a 200,000 mt/y animal grade dicalcium phosphate plant at GNFC’s Dahej site in Gujarat. The two companies signed a memorandum of understanding for the jv in August 2014. EcoPhos will take an 85 percent stake in the company, to be named EcoPhos GNFC India Pvt Ltd., with the balance to be held by GNFC. The cost of the project is an estimated R5.26 billion ($78 million), according to a Bombay Stock Exchange filing March 12 by GNFC. The main driver for the project on GNFC’s side is to consume around 150,000 mt/y of hydrochloric acid produced as a by-product from GNFC’s new 50,000 mt/y toluene diisocyanate plant at Dahej. EcoPhos will provide the license, engineering services, and proprietary equipment for the project and will market the dicalcium phosphate. According to EcoPhos CEO and founder Mohamed Takhim, the project is a substantial step in the realization of EcoPhos’ target to become the global market and cost leader in animal feed phosphates through its Animal Feed division.
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