Vishnu Chemicals Ltd. and France-based DCX Chrome SAS have formed a 50/50 joint venture to establish a greenfield facility for high-purity chromium metal in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India, the companies announced Sept. 8.

The proposed plant will have installed capacity of 6,000 metric tons per year and will use DCX Chrome’s aluminothermic chromium production technology, according to the companies. Vishnu Chemicals will supply chrome oxide green to the joint venture from its chromium chemicals operations.

The facility is intended to supply high-purity chromium metal for applications including aerospace, defense, energy, oil and gas and chemical processing. The companies said the project will provide a domestic source of material that is currently largely imported into India.

DCX Chrome is a subsidiary of France-based Delachaux Group and produces high-purity aluminothermic chromium metal and specialized chromium powders. Vishnu Chemicals, headquartered in Hyderabad, India, produces chromium, barium and strontium chemicals.

Why This Matters

The project adds a downstream metal-production operation to Vishnu Chemicals’ existing chromium chemicals business. The aluminothermic process reduces chromium oxide with aluminum to produce chromium metal and aluminum oxide; the U.S. Geological Survey identifies chromium oxide as a feedstock for chromium metal produced through this process.

High-purity chromium has also been identified by the U.S. government as relevant to defense and essential civilian applications, including nickel-based superalloys used in gas-turbine engines for military and commercial aircraft.