September 21, 2023

Air Water Inc. will Invest approximately 13.5 Billion Yen to Build a New Industrial Gas Plant in Eastern India

The plant will supply oxygen to SAIL, India's state-owned steel company, and is expected to start operations in October 2025. Demand for steel products in India is expanding, mainly for automobiles and building materials. Air Water will increase production hubs in anticipation of a significant increase in the use of oxygen, which is essential to the steel industry. The company aims to achieve 100 billion yen in total sales in India, including industrial gas, by 2030, about five times the current level.

Industrial gas plants can either liquefy the gas they produce and transport it by tanker truck to the customer's plant or hospital, or build a plant adjacent to a large plant, such as a steel mill, and supply gas in gaseous form via pipes "on-site method." This is the first time Air Water has built its on-site plant in India.

Air Water entered the industrial gas business in India in 2013. In 2019, it successively acquired the Indian operations of Linde of Germany and Praxair of the United States in the same industry, supplying industrial gases to Indian steelmakers and others. The surplus industrial gas produced by the on-site method plant can be provided to customers in the surrounding area, which is expected to expand sales channels in India.

Air Water positions India as a priority region along with North America. Crude steel production capacity is increasing in India, mainly for automobiles and building materials, with production in 2022 at 124.7 million tons, the second highest level after China. The Indian government aims to produce 300 million tons of crude steel by 2030.