After more than a month of shutdown caused by a a vital raw material shortage, Manali Petrochemicals is about to begin operations at its main Plant-1 facility in Manali, Chennai, following fresh government intervention.
The corporation had paused operations on March 12 after a full stoppage of propylene supply from Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL), performing under directives from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. The disruption forced the firm to invoke force majeure, stalling manufacturing on the plant.
Relief came by a updated policy from the Department of Pharmaceuticals underneath the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers. The government has now stepped in to allocate a fixed set daily quantity of propylene to Manali Petrochemicals, ensuring supply from CPCL to help pharmaceutical sector demand.
“This is in persistence of our intimation… concerning temporary suspension of operations at Plant-1, Manali, Chennai due to Force Majeure,” the corporation stated in its official communication.
With feedstock supply anticipated to continue, the corporation verified it’s implementing the restart process instantly. “The corporation will begin the process of restarting operations at Plant-1, Manali, Chennai from these days,” the statement referred to.
Moreover, operations will not return overnight. “Operations at Plant-1 are anticipated to continue in a phased manner upon receipt of propylene supplies from CPCL,” the corporation verified, signaling a gradual scale-up.
The corporation also showed that the crisis has in part eased. “The Force Majeure situation… stands resolved to the extent of the propylene allocation made by way of the Government of India,” it stated, adding that efforts are underway to restore regular manufacturing levels swiftly.
Meanwhile, there’s no change within the status of Plant-2, which stays unaffected as per earlier disclosures.
Manali Petrochemicals said it will persist to update stock exchanges on similarly developments because the situation evolves.
