Indian Fertilizer Industry

India is primarily an agriculture based economy. The agricultural sector and its other

associated spheres provide employment to a large section of the country's population

and contribute about 25% to the GDP.

The Indian Fertilizer Industry is one of the allied sectors of the agricultural sphere.

India has emerged as the third largest producer of nitrogenous fertilizers. The adoption

of back to back Five Year plans has paved the way for self sufficiency in the production

of food grains. In fact production has gone up to an extent that there is scope for the

export of food grains. This surplus has been facilitated by the use of chemical fertilizers.

The large scale use of chemical fertilizers has been instrumental in bringing about the

green revolution in India. The fertilizer industry in India began its journey way back in

1906. During this period the first Single Super Phosphate (SSP) factory was established

in Ranipet in Chennai. It had a capacity of producing 6000 MT annually. In the pre and

post independence era a couple of large scale fertilizer units were established namely

the Fertilizer Corporation of India in Sindri, Bihar and the Fertilizer & Chemicals

Travancore of India Ltd in Cochin, Kerala.

The Indian government has devised policies conducive to the manufacture and

consumption of fertilizers. Numerous committees have been formed by the Indian

government to formulate and determine fertilizer policies. The dramatic development of

the fertilizer industry and the rise in its production capacity has largely been attributed to

the favorable policies. This has resulted in large scale investments in all three sectors

viz. public, private and co-operative.

At present there are 57 large scale fertilizer units. These manufacture an extensive

range of phosphatic, nitrogenous and complex fertilizers. 29 of these 57 units are

engaged in the manufacturing of urea, while 13 of them produce Calcium Ammonium

Nitrate and Ammonium Sulphate. The remaining 20 fertilizer plants manufacture

complex fertilizers and DAP. There are also a number of medium and small scale

industries in operation, about 72 of them. The following table elucidates the installed

capacity of each sector.

Sl. No Sector Capacity (LMT) Percentage Share

N P N P

1 Private Sector 53.94 35.13 44.73 62.08

2 Public Sector 34.98 4.33 29.0 7.65

3 Cooperative

Sector

31.69 17.13 26.27 30.27

  Total 120.61 56.59 100.0 100.0

The Department of Fertilizers is responsible for the planning, promotion and

development of the Fertilizer industry. It also takes into account the import and

distribution of fertilizers and also the financial aspect. There are four main divisions of

the department. These include Fertilizer Imports, Movement and Distribution, Finance

and Accounts, Fertilizers Projects and Planning and Administration and Vigilance. It

makes an assessment of the individual requirements of the states and union territories

and then lays out an elaborate supply plan.

Though the soil in India is rich in silt, it lacks chief plant nutrients like potassium,

nitrogen and phosphate. The increase in the production of fertilizers and its

consumption acts as a major contributor to overall agricultural development.

Major Players in Indian Fertilizer Market

The development trajectory of the agricultural industry derives its main stimulus from the

growth in production of fertilizers in India. The fertilizer industry earlier witnessed the

preponderance of the public sector units who still retain their status as the major players

in Indian fertilizer market. Coupled with the private enterprisers manufacturing fertilizers,

India has emerged as the third largest producer of the agro-input. The country has also

emerged as one of the largest consumers of fertilizers along with China and the United

States of America.

The fertilizer sector in India holds a major share among the energy intensive industries

of the country. The industry has shown unparalleled growth in the past few years.

Although growing in an accelerating rate, the industry is faced with a number of

challenges, inter alia, the lack of major plant resources such as nitrogen, phosphate and

potassium. Notwithstanding these specificities, India produces both nitrogenous and

phosphatic fertilizers in the domestic market. Urea and ammonium are the two popularly

manufactured nitrogenous fertilizers in India. The various companies dedicated to the

manufacture of fertilizers also produce straight phosphatic fertilizers such as single

super phosphate and complex fertilizers such as di-ammonium phosphate or DAP. The

lack of indigenous reserves of potash in India has stunted the production of potassic

fertilizers in the country.

The Indian fertilizer industry has a capacity of 56 lakh MT of phosphatic nutrient and

121 lakh MT of nitrogen. While the private sector has a huge installed capacity for

phosphatic fertilizers, capacity utilization of nitrogenous fertilizers is higher in the public

sector.

Sector-wise, Nutrient-wise Installed Fertilizer Manufacturing Capacity

as on 31.01.2007

The government has established nine public sector undertakings in the Indian fertilizer

market and one cooperative society, known as the Krishak Bharati Cooperative Limited

(KRIBHCO) that functions under the supervision of the Department of Fertilizers in

India. There are 63 large units dedicated to the production of fertilizers. Among these, 9

units produce ammonium sulphate while 38 units produce urea. There are 79 small and

medium scale units producing single superphosphate.

The public sector companies in Indian fertilizer market are listed

below:

Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited (FCIL)

Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited (HFC)

Pyrites, Phosphates & Chemicals Limited

Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited (RCF)

National Fertilizers Limited (NFL)

Projects &Development India Limited (PDIL)

The Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore Limited (FACT)

Madras Fertilizers Limited (MFL)

FCI Aravali Gypsum & Minerals India Limited, Jodhpur

Along with the public sector units, there has been a euphoric growth in the production of

fertilizers in the private sector as well. Some of the companies dedicated to the

production of fertilizers include Khaitan Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited, Managalore

Chemicals, Nagarjuna Fertilizers, Zauri Chambal, BEC Fertilizers and Gujarat State

Fertilizers &Chemicals Limited.

The fertilizer industry in India shows an upward rising trend that would challenge the

broader market in future years. With an outstanding investment of Rs. 20, 677 Crore in

the September, 2007 quarter, the sector will witness burgeoning production that will

reach new heights in the coming years. Most of the companies are expecting an

approval for their huge capital expenditure plans from the Department of Fertilizers in

India. The flourishing industry will fill in the gap between demand and supply of

fertilizers in India.

Private Companies in Indian Fertilizer Market

A number of private companies in the Indian fertilizer market are engaged in production

of the agro-input. Most of the companies also engage in exporting fertilizers in the

global market, earning foreign capital from the business. The country stands at the third

position among the largest producers of the product in the world. India is also ranks

among the highest consumers of fertilizers.

The euphoric growth in the business has also facilitated the agricultural industry of

India, which is dependent for its optimization on the fertilizer industry.

Phosphatic and nitrogenous fertilizers such as urea, single super phosphate and

ammonium are produced by the companies in India. Complex fertilizers such as di-

ammonium phosphate are also domestically produced. However, lack of indigenous

reserves of potash does not support the production of potassic fertilizers in the country.

The nitrogenous fertilizer production capacity is higher in the public sector units while

the private companies in the Indian fertilizer market have a larger capacity for the

production of phosphatic fertilizers.

Private Companies Producing Fertilizer in India

Some of the private companies producing fertilizers in India are mentioned

below:Khaitan Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited - This Company produces single

super phosphate fertilizer and sulphuric acid. The fertilizer is manufactured in the

granular form in this company. Khaitan Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited has its office

in Indore.

Mangalore Chemicals - This is the only company in the state of Karnataka that is

engaged in the manufacturing of chemicals and fertilizers. The plant has an annual

turnover of more than Rs. 800 crore.

Nagarjuna Fertilizers - With their office at Hyderabad, this company is engaged in the

production of fertilizers and agro-chemicals. It also engages other activities such as

refining petroleum, finance and power.

Zauri Chambal - An undertaking of the K.K Birla Group, this company engages in the

production of fertilizers such as urea, hybrid seeds, cement and chemicals. The

company also provides engineering solutions and home finance. The company was

established in collaboration with the US Steel Corporation. The company has

established NPK plant, DAP plant, urea plant and ammonia plant in the country.

BEC Fertilizers - This Company is dedicated to the manufacture pf agro-inputs that will

facilitate the agricultural sector. The company manufactures the product ANAND single

super phosphate along with other micro-nutrients, plant hormones and chemicals for the

protection of plants. The company has established its unit in Bilaspur, Uttar Pradesh.

Gujarat State Fertilizers &Chemicals Limited - This multiproduct company is

dedicated to the production of fertilizers such as ammonium sulphate, urea, DAP and

NPK. It also produces water soluble fertilizers. Along with fertilizers, the company is

engaged in the production of bio-fuels, bio-fertilizers, plant tissue culture and oleum.

DSCL - The primary business of this company based in North India is the manufacture

of urea and other farm inputs such as DAP, chemicals and pesticides.

Some of the other private companies engaged in the production of

fertilizers in India are listed below:

The Scientific Fertilizer Co Pvt Ltd

Coromandel Fertilizers

Deepak Fertilizers and Petrochemicals Corporation Limited

Apratim International

Aries AgroVet

Devidayal Agro Chemicals

The production of nitrogenous fertilizer in the private sector has been increasing in the

past few years. The private sector had only 13% share in the production in 1960-61.

The private sector has always retained a higher share in the production of phosphatic

fertilizer production.

Concluding remarks on Indian Fertilizer Industry

The Indian fertilizer industry has helped in the growth of the Indian economy. The

fertilizer sector by enhancing the agricultural productivity has in turn resulted in

providing a major support to the farmers who are primarily dependent on agriculture.

Fertilizers have also played a pivotal role in India's food Security.

For the Indian government, food has been the primary objective owing to its huge

population. In India, therefore the fertilizer industry has wielded immense influence, like

no other sectors in India. To cater to the needs of the individual, government top priority

has been towards production of food grain. Since the poor farmers could not afford to

buy expensive fertilizing agents, the government's interventionist policy helped in

providing the farmers fertilizers at a reasonable cost. The government formulated the

Retention Price-Cum Subsidy scheme which has been a major impetus for the fertilizing

industry since 1977 to 1992.

The following data compares the consumption against the production of fertilizers in

India over the years.

Increase in fertilizer consumption:

2005-06: 20.3mn Mts

Increase in fertilizer production:

1951-52: .04 million Mts

2005-06: 15.5mn Mts

These periods also witnessed a rapid increase in food grain production, which was

estimated to be initially 121 million tons from 52 million tons and finally increased to 208

tons.

At present the government has formulated a new pricing scheme (NPS) replacing the

RPS. The fertilizer industry of India is not same in terms of stock, its yield, and

technology. Because of this, the urea plants have been assorted into groups to reduce

them from being diverse and incomparable under the NPS scheme. The NPS has been

modified, promoting further investment in the Indian fertilizer sectors.

The Fertilizer Association of India (FAI) has been set up a model which is based on

several factors that include fertilizer prices, high yielding areas, irrigated areas, fertilizer

nutrient prices and previous years' fertilizer consumption. An estimate of the demand

and supply till the end of the 11 th five year plan is given in the chart below:

Year Supply

N+P

Demand

N+P+K

Demand Supply

Gap N+P+K

Demand of K

2007-08 16950 23125 8835 2660

2008-09 17585 24085 9305 2805

2009-10 18595 25035 9405 2965

2010-11 19912 25960 9178 3130

2011-12 19965 26900 10235 3300

Today, India stands as the third largest fertilizer consumer and producer of the world. It

has been observed that the subsidies on Indian fertilizer have been rising at constant

rate. This is due to the rise in the cost of production and the inability of the government

to raise the maximum retail price of the fertilizers. The population of the country is

rapidly increasing at 1.5% annually. This requires higher production of food grains. The

total cropped area is only 30% of the net geographical area, which is not enough for

increasing the agricultural productivity. Now, the main focus is on the improvement of

the farm income, for which the fertilizer industry needs to lay more stress on the

agricultural activities in the country. This will also help to improve terms between the

government agencies and the fertilizer industry in India.

Challenges before Indian Fertilizer Industry

The growth trajectory of the Indian fertilizer industry has camouflaged the impending

challenges with which it is faced. Growth and development of agriculture in India derives

a significant stimulus from the fertilizer industry.

Agricultural milieu in India could be jeopardized by the uncertainties in the fertilizer

industry. The government is faced with the piquant situation, which demands a balance

between the needs of the farmers and the fertilizer manufacturers.

The challenges before the Indian fertilizer industry relate to the incertitude in the supply

of fertilizers. There has been a surge in the demand for fertilizers in the past few years.

Good monsoonal showers have led to the growth in agriculture, inadvertently increasing

the consumption rate of fertilizers. However, the robust growth in consumption

propensity has not been met with the required surge in fertilizer production. This has

widened the gap between the demand and supply of fertilizers, which has led to an

increase in the dependence of the country on imports. This also reflects on the lack of

realizing of the domestic capacity utilization of the reserves in the country.

Another important factor that has led to the stunted growth of the fertilizer industry is the

rise in prices of the feedstock. The fertilizer industry is dependent on gas for the

production of urea and phosphoric acid for the production of phosphatic fertilizers and

DAP. The country imports its inputs from other countries. The overseas suppliers of raw

materials realize the predicament of the Indian fertilizer industry and have started

exploiting the shortage through clever pricing.

In recent years, some of the private companies, dedicated to the production of fertilizers

have affectively taken stakes in the overseas sources of raw materials. Although this

has aided the industry, it has however been unable to reduce the government's burden

of subsidizing the rates. The fertilizer industry is remained protected under the umbrella

of the Retention pricing scheme of the Indian government.

The government has introduced policies to decontrol the prices but delayed the

implementation of the parameters that have not augured in favor of the industry. As a

result, fertilizer subsidies continue to mount and are expected to cross Rs. 50,000 crore

in the year 2008. The pricing of the fertilizers are also dependent on the freight charges

that are Baltic dry index.

The small size of the older plants and the low efficiency of the public sectors also pose

as drawbacks of the industry. Recent policies of the government are directed towards

revamping of these industries and restoring them to health.

The fertilizer industry is faced with other challenges inter alia infrastructural bottlenecks

and the uncertainties in government policies. The delay in decision making and

obscurity in setting parameters are among some of the major drawbacks of the

government policies directed towards the industry.

To retrieve the health and growth of the fertilizer industry, the government of India is in

need of long term realistic policies that would enable the industry to overcome the

challenges and survive the present impasse.

Public Sector Companies in Indian Fertilizer Market

There are a number of public sector companies in Indian fertilizer market producing

complex fertilizers, ammonium sulphate, DAP, calcium ammonium nitrate and urea. At

present, there are nine public sector undertakings in the Indian fertilizer market and one

cooperative society.

These function under the supervision of the Department of Fertilizers of India. Of the 63

large units producing fertilizers in India, 9 units are dedicated to the production of

ammonium sulphate and 38 units produce urea. There are 79 small and medium scale

units dedicated to the production of single super phosphate. The Indian industries

producing fertilizers have to total capacity of 56 lakh MT of phosphatic nutrient and 121

lakh MT of nitrogen.

Some of the public sector undertakings in this sector are mentioned

below:

Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited (FCIL) - This Company was established on 1st

January, 1961. It was later reorganized with the National Fertilizers Limited from 1978.

FCI comprises of four units in Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh), Sindri (Jharkhand),

Ramagundam (Andhra Pradesh) and Talcher (Orissa). The company incurred a loss of

Rs. 1209.10 Crore during the financial year of 2004-2005.

Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited (HFC) - Established on 14th March, 1978,

Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited was incorporated consequent to the

reorganization of the NFL Group of Companies and the Fertilizer Corporation of India

Limited. The company has established four units at Durgapur (West Bengal), Namrup

(Assam), Haldia (West Bengal) and Barauni (Bihar). It has incurred a net loss of 964.61

in the financial year 2005-2006.

Pyrites, Phosphates & Chemicals Limited - This Company was incorporated in the

year 1960 to explore the pyrites deposits in India. Pyrites, Phosphates & Chemicals

Limited has three units at Amjhore (Bihar), Dehradun (Uttaranchal) and Saladipura

(Rajasthan). Pyrites, Phosphates & Chemicals Limited incurred a net loss of Rs. 113.91

in the year 2005-2006.

Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited (RCF) - This company was incorporated

in the year 1978 consequently after the reorganization of the Fertilizer Corporation of

India. The company has its units in Trombay and Thal. The net worth of the company in

the year 2000-2001 was 1366 Crore.

National Fertilizers Limited (NFL) - This company was incorporated on 23rd August,

1974. It had two nitrogenous plants during its inception at Bathinda and Panipat. In the

year 2005-06, NFL showed a post-tax profit of Rs. 116.40 Crore. It had produced 11447

tons of industrial nitrogen and 33.44 LMT of urea in the same year.

Projects &Development India Limited (PDIL) - PDIL was registered in the yea 1978

after the reorganization of the Fertilizer Corporation of India. The company earned a

profit of Rs. 10.64 Crore in 2005-06. The company has played a pivotal role in the

designing, procurement, inspection, engineering and supervision of the fertilizer

companies and pants.

The Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore Limited (FACT) - Incorporated in the year

1943, FACT is dedicated to the production of Ammonium Sulphate. The company has

two established plants at Cochin. The company has earned a net profit of Rs. 235.66

Crore at the end of the financial year of 2006. This recovered the loss incurred in the

previous year.

Madras Fertilizers Limited (MFL) - MFL was registered in the year 1966. The

company has its plant in Chennai and is dedicated to the production of ammonia,

complex and bio-fertilizers and urea. MFL utilized 76% of its capacity to produce 368.5

thousand tons of Urea in 2005-06. The company produced 208.2 thousand tons of

complex fertilizers using 25% of its capacity.

FCI Aravali Gypsum & Minerals India Limited, Jodhpur - This Company was

registered as a government undertaking consequent to the reorganization of the

Jodhpur Mining Organization. FCI Aravali Gypsum & Minerals India Limited, Jodhpur

produced 8.54 LMT of gypsum in the financial year of 2005-06.

Some of the other companies engaged in the production of fertilizers

are listed below:

Paradeep Phosphates Limited (PPL)

Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd. (NLC)

Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL)

Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL)

Government Policies and Indian Fertilizer Industry

Government policies and Indian fertilizer industry share a direct nexus, with pricing

mechanisms, productive growth and subsidies forming the crux of the economic

objectives of the government. The government policies for the fertilizer industry are

devised to ensure a sustainable growth and development path in one of the most

intensive sectors of the Indian economy.

Growth, production and usage of the fertilizer industry are directly dependent on the

government policies. Production of foodgrain in India derives the main stimulus for its

growth from the fertilizer industry. The government has intervened time and again in

determining the prices, movement and distribution of the fertilizers and its successful

policies have pitted India as the third largest consumer and producer of the agro-input in

the world after China and the United States.

The policies pursued by the government are devised in response to the

recommendations of the high-powered committees of the country. The Sivaraman

Committee Report (1966) highlighted the importance of the balanced use of fertilizers

along with providing adequate credit support for its distribution and usage. The

committee also provided inputs for realizing the importance of liberalization of fertilizer

marketing that would promote the production of the domestic companies.

The Retention Price Scheme introduced by the government followed the

recommendation of the Marathe Committee that explored the possibilities of maintaining

the farm gate prices of fertilizers. This would enable the government to maintain prices

of the fertilizers during the time of crisis.

The first decontrol policies of the government were introduced in 1992 on the

recommendations of the Joint Parliamentary Committee. Phosphatic and potassic

fertilizer industries were decontrolled by the government while urea industry continued

to produce under subsidized rates.

The complex fertilizer industries were subdivided onto two categories in 2001 after the

modification of the 1998 Tariff Commission. Group I comprised of imported ammonia or

industrial units using gas while Group II included industries using naphtha or fuel oil.

Concessions to the naphtha based units were more than the other group as this showed

lesser efficiency.

Other committees provided recommendations on the methods of promotion, marketing,

distribution and pricing of the fertilizers in India.

Change in government policies is however often responsible for hampering new

investments in the industry. Although the investment in this sector was Rs 20, 677 crore

in September, 2007, most of the bottlenecked projects have not been cleared by the

Department of Fertilizers. The industry will soar up new heights and create a new

growth story with the clearance of the projects and the approval of the new policies.

The production of phosphatic fertilizers in India is heavily dependent on imports as the

country is not endowed with phosphate raw materials. The present objective of the

government policies is to develop a long term program that would protect the interests

of the domestic manufacturers and reduce the dependence of this industry on foreign

imports. Reaching stagnancy, the health of this industry can be restored with a more

realistic policy pursued by the government.

Commodity Trading in India

The commodity trading in India has become very popular among the traders and retail

investors in the recent times. The commodity derivatives constitute an important part of

the commodity futures trading in the Indian financial market. The commodity derivatives

are preferred for the reason that they provide the investors with a better opportunity of

diversifying their portfolios in addition to what the bonds, shares, and real estates offer.

The concept commodity trading in futures market has been put in use very recently in

the Indian market. It was in the year 2003 that the Government of India took the first

major initiative towards setting up multi-commodity exchanges across the nation. In the

same year the government also expanded the list of commodities that can be traded

under the Forward Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1952. The policy initiatives to establish

multi-commodity exchanges at the national level were aimed to make the commodity

trading in India more cost effective and develop the system of risk management to

ensure financial integrity.

Commodity trading through future contracting has been beneficial for the Indian

economy in a number of ways. Commodity trading in futures market comes in handy to

minimize the risks arising out of fluctuations in demand and supple conditions. It also

helps to preserve the benefits derived from profitable economic activities.

The multi-commodity exchanges have been quite helpful for the Indian retailers,

because these national level exchanges enable them to carry out commodity trading

through futures contract even when they do not have any physical stock of the same.

In the financial year 2002-2003, the volume of commodity trading in India recorded a

significant increase. The total value of commodity exchanges in 2002-2003 amounted to

around US$ 23391.8 millions, while the corresponding figure in the 2001-2002 fiscal

stood at US$ 8070.17 millions. The commodities that are mostly traded through

commodity exchanges in India include jute, castor seed, pepper, oilseed complex, and

soybean complex.

The Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd, the National Multi Commodity Exchange of

India Ltd and the National Commodity and Derivative Exchange are the three multi-

commodity exchanges that are functional in India. All these three exchanges make use

of electronic settlement and trading systems to ensure secured and hassle-free

commodity trading.

To participate in the commodity futures trading, the traders and retail investors need to

take the help of the registered equity brokers of the respective exchanges. The ISJ

Comdesk (ISJ Securities), Refco Sify Securities, Sunidhi Consultancy, and

ICICIcommtrade (ICICIdirect) are some of the well-known brokers that operate in the

commodity exchanges of India. Both cash-settled and delivery mechanisms can be

used for commodity trading in India.

It is very simple to start trading in the multi-commodity exchanges of India. The traders

just need to have a separate bank account for the purpose. A commodity demat

account with the National Securities Depository Limited is all that is required to initiate

commodity trading in the National Commodity and Derivative Exchange of India.

Major Players in Indian Fertilizer Market

The development trajectory of the agricultural industry derives its main stimulus from the

growth in production of fertilizers in India. The fertilizer industry earlier witnessed the

preponderance of the public sector units who still retain their status as the major players

in Indian fertilizer market. Coupled with the private enterprisers manufacturing fertilizers,

India has emerged as the third largest producer of the agro-input. The country has also

emerged as one of the largest consumers of fertilizers along with China and the United

States of America.

The fertilizer sector in India holds a major share among the energy intensive industries

of the country. The industry has shown unparalleled growth in the past few years.

Although growing in an accelerating rate, the industry is faced with a number of

challenges, inter alia, the lack of major plant resources such as nitrogen, phosphate and

potassium. Notwithstanding these specificities, India produces both nitrogenous and

phosphatic fertilizers in the domestic market. Urea and ammonium are the two popularly

manufactured nitrogenous fertilizers in India. The various companies dedicated to the

manufacture of fertilizers also produce straight phosphatic fertilizers such as single

super phosphate and complex fertilizers such as di-ammonium phosphate or DAP. The

lack of indigenous reserves of potash in India has stunted the production of potassic

fertilizers in the country.

The Indian fertilizer industry has a capacity of 56 lakh MT of phosphatic nutrient and

121 lakh MT of nitrogen. While the private sector has a huge installed capacity for

phosphatic fertilizers, capacity utilization of nitrogenous fertilizers is higher in the public

sector.

Sector-wise, Nutrient-wise Installed Fertilizer Manufacturing Capacity

as on 31.01.2007

The government has established nine public sector undertakings in the Indian fertilizer

market and one cooperative society, known as the Krishak Bharati Cooperative Limited

(KRIBHCO) that functions under the supervision of the Department of Fertilizers in

India. There are 63 large units dedicated to the production of fertilizers. Among these, 9

units produce ammonium sulphate while 38 units produce urea. There are 79 small and

medium scale units producing single superphosphate.

The public sector companies in Indian fertilizer market are listed

below:

Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited (FCIL)

Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited (HFC)

Pyrites, Phosphates & Chemicals Limited

Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited (RCF)

National Fertilizers Limited (NFL)

Projects &Development India Limited (PDIL)

The Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore Limited (FACT)

Madras Fertilizers Limited (MFL)

FCI Aravali Gypsum & Minerals India Limited, Jodhpur

Along with the public sector units, there has been a euphoric growth in the production of

fertilizers in the private sector as well. Some of the companies dedicated to the

production of fertilizers include Khaitan Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited, Managalore

Chemicals, Nagarjuna Fertilizers, Zauri Chambal, BEC Fertilizers and Gujarat State

Fertilizers &Chemicals Limited.

The fertilizer industry in India shows an upward rising trend that would challenge the

broader market in future years. With an outstanding investment of Rs. 20, 677 Crore in

the September, 2007 quarter, the sector will witness burgeoning production that will

reach new heights in the coming years. Most of the companies are expecting an

approval for their huge capital expenditure plans from the Department of Fertilizers in

India. The flourishing industry will fill in the gap between demand and supply of

fertilizers in India.