Pradeep Koneru - Trimex plans $850 million titanium unit in Indonesia Pradeep Koneru Trimex Sands, a part of the

Trimex group which has presence across India, UAE, Dubai and a leading international conglomerate with a focus on heavy minerals, has signed a MoU with the Indonesian government to set up a world-class integrated titanium project worth $850 million. Leveraging heavy mineral resources in Indonesia, the company will identify the projects site in accordance with the location of titanium resources in the country and will enable the authorities to advance lesserdeveloped regions of Indonesia. The company will invest in three phases over the next 10 years. Pradeep Koneru Trimex Sands Pvt Ltd, part of the Dubai-based Trimex Group, proposes to set up titanium plants in India and Indonesia over the next few years. The Indian plant will be located at Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh, where the company currently produces Ilmenite through beach sand mining. Ilmenite is the raw material to produce titanium pigment, which has uses in the manufacture of paints, plastics, rubber and aircraft parts, among others. We plan to invest about $500 million (Rs 2,250 crore) over the next three to four years in the 45,000 tone titanium pigment plant, said Mr. Pradeep Koneru, Executive Director and Trimex Sands. The company plans to scale up the production of Ilmenite from the present 2 lakh tons to 5 lakh tons, for which, it has applied for environmental clearances, he said. India produces about 50,000 tons of titanium pigment, while the requirement is estimated at 1.5 lakh tons per annum. The company also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Indonesian Government on Tuesday to set up a 45,000 tons titanium pigment plant in that country at an investment of $850 million over 10 years. The land for the proposed project, which expects to create a total of 6,500 local jobs, is yet to be identified, Mr. Pradeep Koneru said. Indonesia's Industry Minister, Mr. M.S. Hidayat, said the proposed plant would reduce the country's dependence on imports. Despite having large resources of Ilmenite, Indonesia imports about 46,000 tons of titanium pigment annually, he said.

Mr. Prasad Koneru, Chairman, Pradeep Koneru Trimex Group, said the proposed plant would help expand footprint in Indonesia, where the company already has a presence in coal mining.