Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited received in-principle board approval on July 23, 2026, for an additional hydrochloric-acid synthesis unit at its Dahej complex in Gujarat, India.
The decision was disclosed through the Indian stock exchanges at approximately 6:55 p.m. India Standard Time. Reports published on July 26 were subsequent media coverage and should not be treated as the project’s approval date.
The project is expected to cost approximately ₹550 million, or ₹55 crore. GACL says the unit is intended to improve chlorine utilization and optimize caustic-soda production at Dahej. The additional hydrochloric acid is expected to support a previously approved phosphoric-acid plant.
Chlorine balance is critical to chlor-alkali economics
Caustic soda and chlorine are produced together through brine electrolysis. A chlor-alkali producer cannot increase caustic-soda output indefinitely without securing an outlet for the corresponding chlorine.
When chlorine demand is insufficient, plants may have to reduce operating rates even when the caustic-soda market is favorable.
Producing hydrochloric acid and other chlorine derivatives allows manufacturers to convert chlorine into materials that can be used internally or sold into downstream markets.
For GACL, the proposed unit would connect chlorine from the chlor-alkali operation with hydrochloric-acid demand associated with its phosphoric-acid investment.
Separate from the 2025 HCl project
In May 2025, GACL approved a different 90–120 metric-ton-per-day hydrochloric-acid synthesis unit at Dahej, with estimated investment of ₹350 million.
That earlier unit was intended to use an additional 80–100 tons of chlorine per day and supply captive requirements at other GACL plants.
The 2026 disclosure specifically refers to “one more” HCl synthesis unit and gives a higher estimated cost of ₹550 million. The publicly available summary does not disclose the new unit’s production capacity.
The 90–120-ton-per-day figure from the 2025 project should therefore not be attributed to the newly approved unit.
A relatively small but strategically integrated investment
The project is modest compared with major petrochemical or fertilizer developments. Its significance lies in integration rather than scale.
By improving chlorine consumption and supplying another planned downstream plant, GACL may be able to raise overall asset utilization and reduce dependence on externally sourced hydrochloric acid.
The project remains at the in-principle approval stage, and a commissioning schedule has not yet been disclosed in the verified public summaries.
