India-based Aditya Birla Group announced its plan to setup a viscose staple fibre (VSF) plant in Turkey’s Adana Organized Industrial Zone. Claiming to be the world’s largest VSF manufacturer, the company proposes to invest US $ 500 million over the next five years to setup a fully integrated, 180 kilotons/year VSF plant. With a captive power plant, CS2 plant and a sulphuric acid plant, the proposed VSF plant will come up in two phases. “Our aspiration is to significantly ramp up our global market share and our capacities by the turn of the decade. Establishing a world-class plant in Turkey is a step in this direction,” commented Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman, Aditya Birla Group.
K K Maheshwari, Global Director of the VSF Business of Group, explained that currently VSF’s manufacturing capacity is 750 kilotons/year. “Our ambition is to raise it to 1.1 million tons by 2015. We expect to commission our plant in Turkey by early 2015. This capacity in Turkey will primarily cater to the textile industries here. Currently, 100% of VSF used in the textile and non-woven sectors is imported,” he stated.
