Sibur subsidiary to support $450 mn JV to build Butyl Rubber plant in India

MUMBAI : Russia’s Sibur has extended its geographic reach into South Asia with the launch of a new subsidiary in India. Sibur is a Russian based petrochemicals giant and synthetic rubber producer controlled by Russian billionaire Leonid Michelson.

The offshoot, Sibur Petrochemical India, will carry out petrochemical product market research and business development in India, including government relations.

Its primary role, however, is to support the firm’s $450 million joint venture to construct a 100,000 metric tons per year butyl rubber plant in Jamnagar. The Reliance Sibur Elastomers Private plant, due to go on stream in mid-2014, is a partnership with Indian industrial group Reliance Industries.

Moscow-based Sibur’s newest subsidiary will work alongside its Indian partners to support group employees coming to India to carry out installation and start-up work at the new production site, it stated.

Evgeny Griva, formerly adviser to Sibur’s managing director for planning, logistic and sales support, was appointed CEO of the Indian subsidiary.

Synthetic rubber from the jointly owned Jamnagar plant will be aimed at India’s automotive industry which today consumes more than 75,000 ton per year, all of it imported. When completed, the unit—owned 74.9 percent by Reliance and 25.1 percent by Sibur—will be the world’s fourth-largest butyl rubber producer worldwide, according to the partners.

In February, when Sibur announced its joint venture deal, it said the partners also signed a license agreement allowing the use of Sibur’s proprietary butyl rubber production technology at the Indian plant. This is the first joint project where the Russian group is involved as the technology licensor.

Source: Rubber Country

Incoming search terms:

• butyl rubber market
• butyl rubber licensor