Chemical plant faces delays amid forex crunch

Engro Polymer and Chemicals Ltd (EPCL) — which is the country’s only manufacturer of polyvinyl chloride or PVC resin used in plastic and rubber production — has been facing long delays in setting up its $23 million hydrogen peroxide plant. Speaking to a group of journalists at the Bin Qasim factory on Wednesday, company officials said the cost of the under-construction facility has exceeded the initial estimate as the firm is struggling to import machinery amid restrictions on dollar outflows. The country’s only integrated chlor-vinyl chemical complex generates hydrogen as a by-product of its caustic manufacturing process, which is currently used as a fuel in its power plant. The project aims to divert hydrogen to the production of hydrogen peroxide, which is mainly used as a bleaching agent in the textile industry. According to Chief Commercial Officer Muhammad Idrees, the proposed plant will likely start commercial production next year. It’ll sell its output to export-oriented textile mills whose foreign customers prefer bleaches that are oxygen-based as opposed to chlorine-based. “The main hurdle is the curb on imports due to the foreign exchange crisis,” he said.