Bhadrachalam Paper to invest Rs 1,100cr in fibre line

The ITC Bhadrachalam plans to invest Rs 1,100 crore in a new fibre line and paper and board making machinery for its Sarapaka mill. The elemental chlorine-free (ECF) pulp line will have a capacity of 600 tonne/day of bleached kraft pulp.

It will use a mixture of wood and non-wood fibres, including eucalyptus, bamboo and subabul as raw material. The fibre line would commence the production in 2007-2008. The proposed fibre line would have an environment-friendly technology and an upgraded paper and board making unit.

Once installed, the equipment would put the Bhadrachalam mills at the top in terms of production and Sarapaka unit would become the leader in India in paper boards and specialty division (PSPD).

The new unit would produce 1.35 lakh tonnes of pulp every year.

According to KK Shashikumar, general manager, (personal and administration), the new fibre line would cater to the needs of four board machines and two paper machines on the Sarapaka campus.

He said the expansion would take the output capacity to 525,000 tonnes/yr with the aid of new machinery. The Bhadrachalam mill commissioned India's only elemental chlorine free pulp mill with a capacity of 100,000 tonnes three years ago in September 2002.