Ahmedabad: The board of Tata Chemicals has approved investment of Rs 295 crore to set up a facility in Gujarat to manufacture silica.

The board approved an investment of Rs 295 crore for setting up of a plant to manufacture precipitated highly dispersible silica in Gujarat. This speciality chemical represents downstream value addition to the company’s soda ash business. The technology for manufacturing highly dispersible silica has been developed in-house at its innovation centre in Pune and seven patents have already been filed. Precipitated silica is a versatile product with applications in many industries including rubber, coatings, pesticides and oral care.

The board also approved facility in Andhra Pradesh to make soluble dietary fibres. Total fresh investment in Gujarat and Andhra facilities will be Rs 595 crore.

“The proposed investments are in line with the company’s strategy on transformation journey by focusing on building businesses with technology enabled differentiation and brands through greater customer centricity,” the company said.

– With inputs from agencies