PUBLIC SECT.FERT. NA

closed

The proposed credit would help finance the modification and expansion of FCI's Nangal Unit. Located in the State of Punjab in northern India, the existing Nagal fertilizer plant has an annual design capacity of 80,000 tons per year of nitrogen in the form of calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN) fertilizer and 14 tons per year of heavy water as by-product. The expansion project would provide capacity for producing an additional 152,000 tons per year of nitrogen in the form of urea, now the most popular fertilizer in India and in most other countries. It would also replace the power-intensive electrolysis section of the existing, fully depreciated ammonia plant, thus permitting release of a large amount of hydroelectric power for more economic uses in the area; the manufacture of heavy water would be discontinued but other existing production (CAN) and off-site facilities would be retained. The feedstock for the fertilizer production facilities would be heavy fuel oil, of which in present circumstances India has relatively large quantities, but crude oil could be used as an alternative.