The Ramagundam Fertilizers and Chemicals (RFCL) is expected to begin urea production from November 2020 as against the scheduled June 2020 due to the lockdown and COVID-19 pandemic. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy reviewed the progress of the plant.
As of 15 August 2020, the plant achieved overall physical progress of 99.67 percent. RFCL, a joint venture of Engineers India, the National Fertilizers and the Fertilizers Corporation of India, is located at Ramagundam in Telangana. The gas-based plant has the capacity to produce 1.27 million tonne of urea per annum.
The anticipated mechanical completion of the plant is by 20 September 2020. Thereafter commissioning activities will take five to six weeks for urea production.
In the present scenario, urea production is expected by the end of October 2020 and scheduled commercial operation date (SCOD) by mid-November 2020.
The revised project cost is Rs 6,175 crore, of this Rs 1,721 crore is equity and Rs 4,454 crore debt. The original estimated cost for the project was Rs 5,254 crore.
Apart from this, the plant has capacity to produce 2,200 tpd of ammonia also.
Also, 30 to 40 percent workforce of contractors who had left for their native places after the lockdown was imposed have not yet returned.