The following article is based on interviews with key personalities from the MasterBatch industry.

What are you views on the year 2000-2001?

The Indian plastics business certainly has not been able to keep up the pace of growth that was seen in the mid-nineties. 2000-2001 saw a definite slow down. Among all polymers, PP has grown at 15%, all the other commodity polymers have grown below 10% in 2000. The Raffia/tape sector has continued to grow well. PP has attained, almost 75% share of the total raffia/tape sector. Films, particularly multi- layer structure, have not grown well. PP furniture also seems to have attained maturity. In fact, there is almost a crisis of capacity utilization in the furniture industry. It is estimated that almost 50% of the total 240 injection moulding machines for PP furniture were closed in 2000.

What about Masterbatches?

The masterbatch business however, continued to grow. This was mainly because more processors are turning to masterbatches on account of, enhanced consistency in performance and elimination of pollution problems.
Growth of masterbatches could be even higher, if the polymer manufacturers resort more to the use of the masterbatch system instead of direct addition of additives. Masterbatches, as they are popularly known, are essential for non-vinyl products. The present usage of masterbatches is predominantly for Polyolefins. Almost 90% of the masterbatch consumption of 34KT in 2000 was in Polyolefins. Styrenics and other non-vinyl polymers account for only about 10%. The distribution of masterbatches in 2000-2001 can essentially be divided as:

The Additive masterbatches are numerous but the major products are:

Antifibrilation masterbatch used by Raffia/tape industry is not included in the above list. The business of antifibrilation masterbatch was almost about 25KT in 2000. Similarly PP filled compound, used by PP furniture sector is also not included. It is estimated that PP furniture could consume another 20KT in 2000.

What about development of new masterbatches?

A tremendous new opportunity for Silicon Masterbatches is in applications for PE duct for optical fibers. This could generate additional business of almost 1500-2000 tonnes/year.

Which sector of the plastics industry is the major user of masterbatches?

The extrusion sector is a major user of masterbatches. In fact, 85% of masterbatches are consumed by the extrusion sector. Thermoforming and blow moulding sectors have now started using masterbatches. This could account for almost 10-12%. The injection moulding sector is one of the slowest in adapting to the use of masterbatches.

What is the estimated installed capacity?

The estimated installed capacity of masterbatches in India is almost 70KT. In fact, the capacity utilization of the masterbatch industry is just about 50%. The distribution of masterbatch manufacturers is as follows:

The larger producers could account for almost 75-80% share of the business.

What is forseen in the coming years?

The outlook is very optimistic in terms of growth of masterbatches in the coming years. The masterbatch business could grow at about 20% for the next few years. Indian masterbatches have not only succeeded in quality, for critical applications like BOPP film of Polyester and PP fibers, but are also in a position to meet the standards of the leading global suppliers in the international markets.