Major Players in Chemical Industry

Chemical Industry is highly heterogeneous with following major sectors:

  •  Petrochemicals
  •  Inorganic Chemicals
  •  Organic Chemicals
  •  Fine and specialties
  •  Bulk Drugs
  •  Agrochemicals
  •  Paints and Dyes

Petrochemicals

Petrochemicals is one of the major category in the chemicals.It is one of the fastest sectors at 13% p.a.It covers :

  •   Basic chemicals like Ethylene, Propylene, Benzene and Xylene etc.
  •   Intermediates like MEG, PAN and LAB etc.
  •   Synthetic fibres like Nylon, PSF and PFY etc.
  •   Polymers like LDPE/HDPE, PVC, Polyester and PET etc.
  •   Synthetic rubber like SBR, PBR etc.

Major Players in Petrochemicals are as follows:

  • Reliance Industries Ltd
  • IPCL Baroda
  • Nagothane
  • Gandhar
  • Haldia Petrochem
  • GAIL   
  • NOCIL

Inorganic Chemicals
Inorganic chemicals has US$ 2.5 Billion industry.It covers basic products like Caustic, Chlorine, Sulphuric Acid etc.Inorganic chemicals are mostly used in detergents, glass, soap, fertiliser, alkalies etc.Competition from imports are on the rise.

Major Products of Inorganic Chemicals

  • Installed Capacity
  • Soda ash
  • Caustic Soda
  • Liquid Chlorine
  • Carbon Black
  • Installed Capacity
  • Calcium carbide
  • Titanium dioxide
  • Aluminium fluoride
  • Potassium chloride
  • Sodium chlorate
  • Red phosphorous

Organic Chemicals

Organic Chemicals has 1 Billion Dollar industry.It covers a wide range of chemicals.Its units concentrated mostly in the Western India

Major Organic Chemicals

  • Methanol
  • Formaldehyde
  • Acetic acid
  • Phenol
  • Acetone
  • Acetic anhydride
  • Nitrobenzene
  • Chloromethane
  • Aniline
  • Maleic anhydride
  • Pentaerithitol
  • PNCB
  • MEK
  • Citric acid
  • ONCB
  • Iso butyl alcohol

Fine and Speciality Chemicals
Fine and Speciality chemicals are low volume, high price/margin chemicals.They are fragmented with large number of players.It has market around US$ 80 million p.a.The major end user segments are Textile, Leather, paper, detergent, rubber, paints, polyester, oil and gas etc.Fine and Speciality Chemicals are growing very fast.

 Major Players of Fine and Speciality Chemicals

  • India: ION Exchange, Balmer Lawrie, Dai Ichi Karkaria. etc.
  • MNC: Ciba, Hoechst, Foseco, Nalco Chemicals, Clariant, ICI etc.
  •  And many small Indian companies

Speciality chemical usage

Category 
Speciality Chemicals
Adhesives Thickeners, tackifiers, binders, stabilisers
Construction Chemicals Sealants, flame retardants, concrete setting accelerators / retarders, mastics
Cosmetic Additives Moisturisers, UV absorbers, masking agents, emulsifiers, proteins
Diagnostic Aids Dyes for angiogram, chemicals for other diagnostics (as NMR)
Elastomers  
SBR, Silicones, Puf, EVA
Electronic Chemicals   
Electronic substrates, packaging materials, plating chemicals, photoresists, etchnats, cleaners & strippers, dopants, sp gases
Enzymes (Indl) Bates for leather, enzymes for pharmaceuticals, food processing industries
Flavours & Fragrances 
Speciality esters, bases, concentrates
Food Additives 
Antioxidants, Flavours, food dyes
Fuel Additives Catalysts, stabilisers, functional additives
(Functional) Dyes  
Dyes for reprographics & dyes for electronic chemicals
Foundry Chemicals   
Binders, resins, mould release agents
Indl Cleaning Agents Solvents based on Spl. Esters & alcohols
Lube Additives Antioxidants, dispersants, antiwear & EP additives, pour point depressants, viscosity modifiers & antifoamers
Metal Plating & Finishing Chemicals 
Cyanates, electrolytic Au/Ag plating, electrolytic / electroless Cu plating chems
Mining Chemicals 
Flocculants, dispersants, thickeners
Oilfield chemical  
Pour point depressants, corrosion inhibitors, demulsifiers, EP additives, thickeners, fluid loss control agents, stabilisers, mud additives, cement additives, EOR chemicals
Paint Additives Wetting agents, dispersants, thixotropic, antisettling, antifoaming agents, defoamers, pH stabilisers, emulsifiers, biocides, corrosion inhibitors, plasticisers, thickeners, antiflotation agents, flow control agents
Paper Additives 
Retention Aids, formation aids, drainage aids, flocculants, defoamers, wet web strength additives, defoamers, biocides, dry strength additives, sizing agents, creping agents, dispersants, binders
Photographic Chemicals Fixing agents, toner, photoresists
Polymer Additives Speciality plasticisers, antioxidants, UV stabilisers, modifiers, flame retardants, antistatic agents
Rubber Chemicals 
Antioxidants, antizonants, vulcanisation accelerators / retarders, modifiers, inhibitors
Surfactants  Anionic & nonionic surfactants mainly used in India. Wetting agents, dispersants, emulsifiers, defoamers, antifoamers, detergency aids
Textile Auxiliaries Sizing agents, leveling agents, dispersants, detergents, acid release agents, dye fixing agents, solvents, anticreasing agents, biocides
Water Management Chem Flocculants, dispersants, corrosion, inhibitors, biocides

 

 Major players of Bulk Drugs

  • Ranbaxy
  • Shasun
  • Cipla
  • Dr. Reddy's
  • Cheminor
  • Lupin
  • IPCA
  • Sun
  • Cadilla
  • Wockhardt
  • Aurobindo
  • Kopran 

Most of the bulk drug companies are Indian companies, whereas some of the major pharmaceutical formulation companies are MNCs.Bulk drug units concentrated around three areas:

  •  Bombay - Ankleshwar
  •  Hyderabad - Madras
  •  Chandigarh

Agrochemical
India is a large agricultural economy which is the major user. Average Indian consumption is very low (1/20th of world average).Agrochemical Consumption varies depending on crop and region.Cash crops like sugarcane, tobacco etc. are the major consumers of pesticides (above 60%)

Major players of Agrochemicals

  •   India: United Phosphorus, Rallis and Excel
  •   MNC: Hoechst Agrevo, Novartis, Bayer etc

Products of Agrochemicals

  • Insecticides
  • Fungicides
  • Herbicides
  • Weedicides
  • Rodenticides
  • Fumigants

Paints and Dyes
Paints and dyes has total Market - US$ 1 Billion.Its growth rate is 12% p.a.Its per capita consumption very low (400 gms) as compared to developed countries like USA (15 kgs). India is a major exporter of dyes, mostly due to ban of production of some of the dyes and intermediates in the developed countries due to pollution.Dyes used in Paints, Inks, Textiles, Polymers etc.

Major Players in Paints and Dyes

  • Paints - Asian Paints, Goodlass Nerolac, ICI, Courtalds, Jenson & Nicholson
  • Dyes & Intermediates - Color Chem (Hoechst), Clariant, IDI, Atul, Mardia etc.
  • Inks - Coates, Hindustan Inks, Sakata
 
5. Bulk Drugs
Bulk Drugs has large market due to large population.It has large exports (US$600-800 million) which is around 6-8% of global drugs market. Its total market is US$3 Billion  per annuam. Out of 475 drugs used, 425 are locally produced.Over 350 units in the organised sector, and many more in the unorganised sector. India is very strong in reverse Engineering, molecular chemistry and because of patents not on products but on process.