The public sector FACT has taken steps to reopen its ammonia plant which has been shut down for about 11 months.
This follows the decision taken by the Kerala Government to waive the State VAT on liquefied natural gas (LNG) used by the company, Jaiveer Srivastava, Chairman and Managing Director, FACT, said.
The current VAT rate on LNG is 14.5 per cent. The exemption of LNG from VAT will help bring down its price to about $13.47 per unit (mmbtu), he told reporters here on Thursday.
The ammonia plant will be reopened within four weeks. Once the plant is stabilised, the Caprolactam plant of the company, which has been closed down for about 28 months, will also be restarted, he said.
The production of Factamfos, which at present is only about 60 per cent of the capacity due to shortage of ammonia, will improve considerably when the ammonia plant becomes operational. However, the company will require about ₹7 crore to reopen the Caprolactam plant, he said.
The substantial fall in the price of Benzene, one of the main raw materials used in the production of Caprolactam, will help in reopening of the plant. He expressed the hope that things would soon turn positive for the company.
To a question on the State government’s request for 150 acres of FACT land for putting up a power plant, he said it was a matter to be decided between the Central and State governments.