GHCL to invest Rs 350 crore for salt field in Kutch

Ahmedabad: Soda ash major, GHCL, an arm of the Dalmia Group, is set to invest Rs 350 crore in setting up a salt field in Kutch. The Zara Zumara Salt Field will be established in the Jara region of Kutch. GHCL's stocks were priced at Rs 603.55 a piece on BSE as the market closed on Friday. The company already acquired a land parcel of 6,500 hectares for the project."Beyond FY 2026, we are actively pursuing growth initiatives, including two phases of a greenfield soda ash facility with a capacity of 5.5 lakh tonnes each, and the development of the Zara Zumara land parcel in Kutch to benefit from the salt and bromine operations," said RS Jalan, managing director, GHCL, during the Q2 results earnings call.Currently, GHCL has a salt capacity of about 8-10 lakh tonnes. "Once we go with the new land which was acquired, it (capacity) can go up to 30 lakh put together. This means an extra 20 lakh tonnes of salt can be produced from the newly acquired land parcel," according to Jalan.The company already announced an investment of Rs 3,500 crore to set up a new plant for which it is awaiting clearance."The salt field will take about three years to take shape and become operational. This will serve for the captive requirement of salt for GHCL's soda ash manufacturing plant in Sutrapada and the proposed greenfield plant as well," said a source privy to the development.Bromine is widely used for pharmaceuticals, chemical intermediates, and dyestuffs manufacturing, and GHCL is eyeing a capacity of 15,000 tonnes per annum of bromine, positioning it among the top five bromine producers in India. According to the company's senior leadership, the company is already exploring bromine derivative projects in the days to come.