With the incorporation of Paradeep Phosphates Limited, popularly known as PPL, a gigantic phosphatic fertiliser plant in the Indian subcontinent came into being on December 24, 1981. The company was entrusted with the challenging task of putting up Asia's largest DAP fertiliser plant. The plant is located on the shores of Bay of Bengal in the port town of PARADEEP, 120 kms away from Bhubaneswar, the capital city of the State of Orissa. The Registered and Corporate office of the Company is located at Bhubaneswar.

With the latest fertiliser technology, PPL was launched as a joint venture of the Government of India and the Republic of Nauru and continued as such till June, 1993. Since then, it has become a public sector undertaking wholly owned by the Government of India. It is no surprise that the company with numerous points of strength and ambitious future plans, coupled with its existing status as market leader in the phosphate fertiliser sector in the country, has been called `The Jewel of the East' rendering its untiring services as the 'Farmer's Faithful Friend'.

Here is a face-to-face with the Chairman-cum-Managing Director Hrishikesh Mishra.

indiamarkets: What objectives have you fixed before PPL?
H Mishra: To produce and market fertilisers and chemicals efficiently and economically, to serve farmers and other customers with quality products and services, to maintain optimum levels of efficiency and productivity in the use of resources and to strive for optimum return on investment and reduction of operating cost, to continuously improve plant and operational safety, to strive for corporate growth by expansion/diversification and to obtain 100 per cent overall capacity utilisation and to improve efficiency of Sulphuric Acid and Phosphoric Acid Units.

indiamarkets: Please tell us about the plant structure.
H.Mishra: The entire project was constructed in two phases with a total cost of about Rs 630 crore (175 million US $ - Rate Rs. 36.00 per US$), and covering an area of 950 hectares. Phase-I consisted of a DAP fertiliser plant with an annual capacity of 720,000 MT (2400 MT per day) with a nutrient ratio of 18per cent nitrogen and 46 per cent phosphorus.

A bagging plant with associated off-site facilities like raw material storage,yard piping, railway siding, pollution control system, pipe rake (3.1 Km long) and closed conveyor belt (3.4 Km long) from the port to the plant site.

indiamarkets: How do you meet your raw material requirement?
H.Mishra: At present, the entire requirement of ammonia and that of about 75per cent of phosphoric acid are met through import. For inhouse production of sulphuric acid and phosphoric acid, raw materials comprising sulphur, rock phosphate and phosphoric acid are totally imported.

indiamarkets: What about the individual production capacities of Sulphuric Acid and Phosphoric acid?
H.Mishra: This is the largest DAP plant in Asia with an annual capacity of 720,000 MT. Inhouse production capacity of sulphuric scid is 660,000 MT and phosphoric acid is 225,000 MT. A captive power plant of 32 MW capacity running at negligible cost with the excess steam generated by the sulphuric acid plant.

indiamarkets: How are you equipped for unloading and discharging the cargo?
H.Mishra: For that, the most sophisticated automatic ship unloader capable of discharging 600 MT of solid cargo per hour is there. The handling system also provides for discharging of 500 MT of liquid cargo per hour. 3.1 Km long pipe rake and 3.4 Km long closed conveyor belt for transport of liquid and solid cargo directly from the ship to the storage tanks and silos.

The plant site is located near the broad guage Paradeep Railway Station making transportation of finished products by rail to various destinations in the country very convenient.

indiamarkets: Do you assure PPL's commitments towards environment?
H.Mishra: Of course! PPL's firm commitment to environment is a solemn pledge to preserve and protect the ecology around it in its finest form for the lasting benefit of the present and the future generations. Its pollution control system is almost fool-proof with zero level effluence.

indiamarkets: Any expansion plans?
H.Mishra: The company has immediate plans for the expansion of the capacity of its existing DAP plant. Consequently, the existing capacity of the phosphoric acid plant will also be doubled. The company has also elaborate plans for tiding over the limitation of the mono-product (DAP) by diversifying into Ammonia-Urea complex with 5,00,000 MT of annual capacity each.

indiamarkets: What are the products PPL manufactures?
H.Mishra: The company manufactures-
DAP (Di-Ammonium Phosphate) grade - 18:46:0 (18per cent N, 46per cent P2O5 )
NPK complex fertiliser in two grades of 12:32:16 and 10:26:26.
DAP & NPK fertilisers manufactured by PPL, also contain 2per cent extra sulphur, which is an important element for crop growth.
DAP manufactured by the Company as well as imported, as a part of the trading activity, is sold under the brand name of "RATNA".
NPK complex fertiliser of both the grades carries the brand name of "SUVARNA".
The Company also handles imported MOP and Urea under the brand name of "KALYANI".

indiamarkets: How do you meet your social obligations while serving the farming community?
H.Mishra: Besides making every possible effort to deliver quality fertiliser well in time at the door-steps of the farmers, we are trying to help and serve the farming community in more than one way by undertaking various types of extension and service activities. Currently, several promotional activities are being organised by qualified field staff in the entire marketing zone of PPL, like Field Demonstrations, Field Days, Crop Seminars, Farmers' Meetings, Participation in Agricultural Fairs/Exhibitions, Farmers' Training, Fertiliser dealers and cooperatives training, Preparation and distribution of farm literature, Exhibition of Films on Fertiliser use.

As part of the process of fulfilling its social obligations, PPL has launched a scheme called "Utthan" meaning "uplift" on August 15, 1997, to coincide with the commemoration of the 50th Year of India's Independence. Under this scheme, three villages in the neighbourhood of PPL Plant site at Paradeep have been adopted with a view to bringing about their all-round development. Activities being undertaken under this scheme are health, literacy, education, drinking water, construction of approach roads etc. The basic idea is to develop these villages as model ones with local population as active participants in the process of growth and development. In future, more and more villages will be taken up under this scheme with similar objectives.

indiamarkets: How about your marketing network? Is it through dealers or through institutional agencies?
H.Mishra: The Company has a well established and wide marketing network covering almost the whole of India particularly all the major states like Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. The Company markets about 67per cent of its material through institutional agencies and the remaining 33per cent through the dealers for which the Company has an extensive network.
On an average the Company has 21per cent of an All India market share of DAP with a potential of bringing it up to 30per cent.

Thus PPL is firmly entrenched as the market leader in DAP Fertiliser in the country.
The Central Marketing Office of the Company is located at
101, HEMKUNT TOWER,
98, NEHRU PLACE,
NEW DELHI-110019 (INDIA).
TEL.:91-11-621 3881, 644 3638

indiamarkets: What is your company's mission ?
H.Mishra: PPL's Mission is to manufacture and market fertilisers, chemicals and their by-products efficiently and economically; and to provide the farmers and other customers with quality products and services to the benefit of national economy.

Committed to strengthening and promoting the cause of modernising Indian agriculture and ushering an era of self-sufficiency in phosphatic fertiliser, PPL is pledged to make available to the farmers quality DAP at the right time, at the right price and at their doorsteps.

indiamarkets: For that, do you require any government assistance?
H.Mishra: In fulfilment of obligation under the MOU with Government, it will process the request of the Company for further Financial Restructuring. The Government will assist in arranging funds for Sulphuric Acid Revamping plan and Pollution Control Measures and the Government will also assist the company in expeditious settlement and realization of outstanding dues payable (including subsidy).