The Indo-Russian industrial project, Titanium Complex Project, in Chatrapur, Orissa, seems to be going nowhere. Indian officials attribute the delay to the halfhearted Russian response towards furthering the project.
Sources told FE that, ??The MoU for the Titanium Complex was signed in 2008, however, nothing much has been done due to the lack of interest from Russia and also there seems to be a land acquisition row between the companies of both the sides.??
Saraf Agency had a co-operation agreement with the Russian partners for acquiring the land and developing a special economic zone (SEZ) where in the joint venture company would set up a Titanium complex. It was also that the Saraf would develop a single product SEZ and the JVC partners would bear the land acquisition cost and developing it into an SEZ.
Accordingly, the Indian partners?Saraf Agency and Titanium Minerals Products (TMPL), firmed up an JV with Federal Agency for the Federal Property Management of Russian Federation and the Technochim Holding of Russia, for setting up the Titanium project .
The JVC, Titanium Products Pvt. Ltd (TPPL), is expected to set up the project at a capital cost of Rs 2,000 crore in the single produce SEZ promoted by the Saraf Agency.
Meanwhile, Saraf Agency has acquired 300 acres land for the SEZ and has already got in-principle and formal nod for which final notification is expected soon, said sources.
However, the Russian partners are now disputing the cost of land acquisition and the cost of the development of SEZ. Since, the IDCO acquired the land, the Russian partners are unwilling to pay anything more than charged by IDCO for the land.
And, the dispute reached at the flash point and the JVC had cancelled the board meeting twice as the directors were reluctant to attend it, said officials.
Sources in the MEA said a high-level Russian team will be meeting with Orisssa chief minister Naveen Patnaik later this month, and will seek his cooperation on the land related matter.
However, a senior state government official speaking on the condition of anonymity said, “We were not aware of any dispute between the partners. The project is sailing well and we are expecting that the formal notification for the SEZ would come soon”.
The promoters the complex signed a contract with the Indian Rare Earths Ltd., for supply of 2 lakh tonnes of raw materials primarily ilmenite per annum for the project. TPPL will have a long-term buyback contract with the Russian partner for purchase of not less than 45,000 tpa of Titanium slag and 30,000 tpa of pigment titanium dioxide.
The first phase of project _ Titanium Slag and pig iron facilities _ is supposed to come up by October 2010. The dioxide facility is to come up by mid-2011 and the titanium sponge by mid-2012.