Indian Oil Corporation and France’s Total have tied up to manufacture and market high-quality bitumen derivatives and specialty products for the growing road-building industry in India.

A new 50:50 Joint Venture (JV) company will combine Research and Development (R&D), and marketing strengths of both IndianOil and Total to manufacture innovative bitumen formulations and superior quality products. These could be polymer-modified bitumen, crumb rubber-modified bitumen, bitumen emulsions and other specialty products.

Commenting on the deal, IndianOil Chairman, SM Vaidya, said: “The operations of the joint venture company would commence by taking over an existing plant of Total at Jodhpur. It would also set up six new greenfield plants at Panipat, Koyali, Haldia, Barauni, Visakhapatnam and Chennai in the first four years. The investment planned towards these new plants is about ₹226 crore,” he added.

The JV will also explore the possibility of catering to other South Asian markets, an IndianOil statement said. The two companies have already established a business relationship in India, notably in LPG and fuel additives, the statement added.

The demand for aggregate material and manufactured material for highway construction and rehabilitation sector in India is very high, especially for good-quality bitumen derivatives. The IndianOil and Total JV will offer high-spec products using sustainable technologies, the statement said.