June 3: Float glass manufacturer Saint Gobain is scouting for land to set up a new solar glass complex.
“We are looking for land in both Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh to set up a full-fledged facility at an outlay of Rs 500 crore,” Saint Gobain Glass India managing director, Mr B. Santhanam.
The company hopes to set up a huge complex that will make crystalline silica, thin-film photovoltaic cells and solar mirrors all under one roof. “As the facilities will also be used for export purposes, we are looking for around 60 acres closer to port in one of the states,” Mr Santhanam said.
The company has also drawn up an ambitious Rs 1,200 crore plan for its expansion in the country.
While Rs 1,000 crore will go towards commissioning its greenfield facility in Bhiwadi in Rajasthan, Rs 100 crore will go towards expanding a 550-tonne per day glass plant that it recently acquired in Gujarat. Another Rs 100 crore has been earmarked for expanding its current facility in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu.
“The Sezal float glass facility, acquired for Rs 686 crore, is a logistically advantageous buy and will be upgraded in three month’s time to serve the western region,” Mr Santhanam said. The Bhiwadi float glass facility, with a capacity of three lakh tonnes per annum, is expected to go live in first half of 2012 and will be the one of the world’s float glass facility on commissioning, the managing director said.