Page 187 - CW E-Magazine (23-7-2024)

Special Report

Resilient Indian chemicals sector on growth path

ndia is the sixth largest producer of companies looking MAULIK PATEL
chemicals in the world and the third to diversify their Chairman & Managing Director
Iin Asia, contributing 7% to Indian supply chains, India’s Epigral Ltd.
GDP. chemical sector has
signifi cant growth plants and are focusing on producing
The Indian chemical sector has opportunities. The environmentally compliant products,
shown resilience and strength in the industry expects an keeping in mind various sustain-
face of challenges, much like the recent investment of Rs. 8-lakh crores in the able practices adopted by end user
World Cup victory of the Indian team. chemicals and petrochemicals sector by industries. Over the past decade, there
However, it has faced diffi culties in the 2025. The government has set a vision has been an increased focus on eco-
past two years. for the chemicals and petrochemicals consciousness and the production of
sector to enhance domestic production, high-quality products. India’s demand
According to a McKinsey report, reduce imports, and attract investments. for various chemicals is increasing and
India’s chemical exports decreased Production-linked incentive schemes demand for many have reached size-
from $36-bn in 2021 to $33-bn in 2023, are planned for the agrochemical able level to set up plants to meet local
with the year-on-year growth of chemi- sector, and efforts will be made to demand.
cal exports to North America dropping create a manufacturing ecosystem
signifi cantly. Specialty chemical ex- through growth of clusters. The Depart- ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ports also declined due to supply chain ment of Chemicals & Petrochemicals Maulik Patel has a Master’s in
constraints and industry destocking. In intends to redraft the Petroleum, Chemi- Chemical Engineering from the Uni-
2023, chemical companies had about cals and Petrochemicals Investment versity of Southern California as well
75 days of inventory, compared to the Region (PCPIR) guidelines. as an MBA from Long Island Uni-
pre-pandemic level of 45 days. versity. In 2006, he joined Meghmani
Opportunities for specialty chemicals Finechem Ltd. (now Epigral Ltd.) as
Signs of growth Specialty chemicals account for a trainee and was appointed Chairman
Moving into the second half of a sizable part of the global chemicals and Managing Director in 2017.
2024, the sector is showing signs of industry, with India’s market expected
growth, driven by increased demand to grow at a CAGR of 12% to US$64-bn With a passion for chemicals and
from industries such as food process- by 2025, and to increase India’s share a strong belief in the capabilities and
ing, construction, infrastructure, home- in the global specialty chemicals market possibilities in the domestic space, he
ware, and wind power. It is predicted to 4% by 2027. led the company in introducing several
that the exports of organic and inorganic products. Under his leadership, Epigral
chemicals will increase by 16.75% to Focus on sustainable growth has become one of India’s prominent
reach US$2.5-bn. Post-pandemic, Indian chemical integrated chemical manufacturers.
players have embraced ‘Industry 4.0’ and
Global destocking is reaching its sustainable initiatives in their manu- REFERENCE
fi nal phase, and global markets are facturing processes. Some companies https://www.ibef.org/industry/
expected to recover soon. With global have installed solar-wind micro-hybrid chemical-industry-india

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Chemical Weekly July 23, 2024 187

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