CUDDALORE: The Hindustan Salts Ltd., a Central Government undertaking, has charted out strategies to make the loss-making company viable within two years.

It would concentrate on augmenting production of industrial salts, adopting modern technology and seeking patents to market branded products, said K. Ponnuchamy, Chairman-cum-Managing Director.

Mr Ponnuchamy, who assumed office on April 2, was addressing a press conference at Neyveli near here on Sunday.

The accumulated losses of the company ran into several crores, owing to many factors such as obsolete technology, unhealthy competition from the unorganised sector, high wages and transport cost, land disputes and vagaries of nature.

He said he would study the trading practices adopted by the company, and rectify the lapses, if any.

The company also proposed to adopt an aggressive marketing strategy and accordingly it would shift its focus from production to trade.

The company with the annual production of 17 million tonnes of salt (of which industrial salts amounted to five million tonnes) held a market share of 2 per cent. There was good demand for industrial salt suitable for the units using the membrane cell technology.

So far, the company was producing salts meant for the units that adopted the mercury cell technology.

Solution mining project

Mr Ponnuchamy revealed that the HSL would commission the Rs 30-crore "solution mining project" in the next couple of years, and the product would meet the requirements of the alkalai-chloro industry.

Under the project, the rock salt would be dissolved with water so as to obtain the brine. A detailed project report would be prepared with Swiss expertise, he said.

He said the HSL would also double the production of bromine, a by-product and an import substitute, from the present 450 to 900 tonnes a year. Each tonne of bromine would fetch about Rs 1 lakh.

Shortfall

The present requirement of the industry was put at 15,000 tonnes whereas the shortfall remained at 9,000 tonnes.

Mr Ponnuchamy observed that the Micro Nutrient Initiative of Canada had allotted Rs 1 crore for the supply of quality iodised edible salt to the below-the-poverty-line people in the country through the HSL.

As the company was adhering to the Minimum Wages Act, the production cost of salt worked out to Rs 300 per tonne, and the transport cost Rs 1,000 per tonne.

Owing to poor transport network, 50,000 tonnes of salt remained uncleared, and therefore, it had been decided to improve the rail line from the production points to the major marketing centres at a cost of Rs 6 crores.

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