KARACHI, April 28: ICI Pakistan to invest Rs915 million in expansion of its Soda Ash plant at Khewra. The new investment will increase the capacity of the plant by 50,000 tons per annum and will also help improve its operational efficiency and productivity.

The year 2004 marked the 60th anniversary of ICI Pakistan’s Soda Ash plant at Khewra. The company had been investing in expansion of this plant to keep its production in line with demand.

Through a number of expansions during the years its capacity has been increased to 225,000 tons per annum. The most recent modernisation and expansion in 2002 encompass installation of DCS Control System, 5.2mw co-generation installation and de-bottlenecking of various units, at a total cost of Rs525 million.

ICI Pakistan’s soda ash plant is currently meeting about 75 per cent requirement of the country by using locally made equipment and raw material, and providing savings to the nation’s foreign exchange reserves.

Major raw materials used are salt, supplied by Pakistan Mineral Development Corporation from the Khewra mines and limestone from ICI Pakistan’s own quarries in Tober as well as sourced locally through contractors. Besides, these, coke, an essential raw material, is supplied by the Pakistan Steel Mills, Karachi.