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The unrest in Egypt has delayed commissioning of Dhunseri Petrochem & Tea’s 4.3-lakh-tonne PET (polyethylene terephthalate) resin facility at Ain El Sokhna, near Cairo.
The project cost has gone up by $12 million (nearly Rs 72 crore at Rs 66 a dollar) to nearly $170 million (approximately Rs 1,122 crore) from $159 million.
Scheduled for commissioning in the first quarter of 2013, the project is now expected to go on stream in December.
The Rs 2,500-crore Dhunseri runs a similar PET capacity at Haldia in West Bengal. PET resin is used in synthetic fibres, containers, thermoforming applications and engineering resins.
“The civil unrest in Egypt and the resulting delays in supply of equipment (from India) led to cost escalation.
The facility should start production by December,” C. K. Dhanuka, Executive Chairman, told Business Line .
The greenfield facility at the deep-sea port on Red Sea will cater mainly to markets in Africa, Europe, West Asia and the US.
New markets are also being explored. Investments in the Egypt facility will be through the company’s Singapore-based subsidiary Dhunseri Petrochem & Tea Pte Ltd.
New Head
According to Dhanuka, his son Mrigank, the company’s Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, will be looking at the day-to-day operations of the Egyptian unit.
He will also be assisted by a board comprising an Indian CEO.
Mrigank now heads Dhunseri’s marketing division and jointly shares the operational responsibilities of the PET resin facility at Haldia.
With both the Egypt and Haldia facilities on stream, Dhunseri is eyeing a near 3.2 times jump in turnover to Rs 8,000 crore by 2015-16.
“Currently, we are consolidating our position,” said Dhanuka.
“We do no have any immediate plans for any capital expenditure for the next two years.”
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