Sumitomo Chemical is planning to construct an agrochemical plant in India. The Japanese company plans to secure approximately fifty acres of land in Gujarat, with construction targeted for completion around 2027. The initial investment for this project is anticipated to exceed $35 million, and the overall investment is projected to surpass several tens of billions of yen as the plant expands gradually.
The upcoming facility will mark Sumitomo Chemical’s third plant in India for manufacturing active ingredients in agrochemicals. As reported by NIKKEI Asia, with full utilisation of the site, the company’s annual production capacity in India is expected to surge by eighty percent. Ranked as the world’s seventh-largest agrochemical producer, Sumitomo Chemical holds about a 9% market share in India, making it the second-largest player.
In the fiscal year concluding in March 2023, Sumitomo Chemical’s agrochemical business in India generated sales of approximately $430 million. The company has set an ambitious target of achieving a sales volume of $500 million by the fiscal year 2025.
The global agrochemical market is poised to expand to $82.5 billion by 2027, as projected by the British research firm AgbioInvestor, surpassing the $74.8 billion recorded in 2022. India currently holds the position of the world’s fifth-largest market in this industry, with Brazil leading the rankings, followed by the U.S., China, and Japan.
