India targets USD 1 trillion chemicals sector by 2040

India's Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister J P Nadda on Monday underscored the ambition to expand the country's chemicals sector to USD 1 trillion by 2040, while assuring industry leaders of the government's commitment to fostering domestic manufacturing and investment. The minister chaired a CEO roundtable organized by the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals, in partnership with Invest India, to deliberate on the sector's growth roadmap.

According to an official statement, Nadda emphasized that the sector must "touch the USD 1 trillion vision by 2040," and highlighted the government's focus on creating an ecosystem conducive to boosting investments and strengthening domestic manufacturing capabilities.

Government's commitment and industry dialogue

Nadda said the government is committed to establishing a continuous and institutionalised dialogue mechanism with the industry, aimed at identifying impediments and translating suggestions into time-bound action. He stressed that achieving the target would require sustained investment, technology development, and stronger domestic manufacturing capabilities.

The minister reiterated the government's focus on creating an enabling ecosystem for investment, innovation, sustainability, and long-term growth. He assured that issues raised by the industry are duly noted and would be suitably taken up with the concerned ministries.

The roundtable, attended by more than 100 delegates from the chemical industry across the world, included representatives from major companies such as BASF, Tronox, ExxonMobil, Fujifilm, Lubrizol, Dow Chemicals, UPL, Reliance, DCM Shriram, HMEL, SABIC, and Haldia Petrochemicals.

Industry asks for support measures

During the interaction, industry leaders highlighted several issues critical to the long-term competitiveness and growth of the sector, as per the official statement. Their demands and recommendations included:

  • Facilitating large-scale investments through appropriate financing and investment-support mechanisms, particularly for capital-intensive upstream projects.
  • Implementing trade remedial measures to provide a level-playing field and protection against unfair trade practices.
  • Enhancing support for research and development, innovation, and technology development.
  • Offering special tax breaks to attract global talent, akin to practices in countries like China, Japan, and the UK.
  • Creating a sovereign fund to facilitate technology acquisition, on the lines of South Korea and the USA.
  • Introducing time-bound single-window clearances for chemical and petrochemical projects.
  • Developing a comprehensive national feedstock policy to reduce vulnerability to geopolitical and global supply-chain disruptions.

The roundtable served as a platform for the government and industry to align on the path toward the USD 1 trillion vision, with Nadda committing to an institutionalised dialogue mechanism to ensure continued collaboration.