960421

ICI deal with

BOC for gas

supply

KARACHI: ICI Pakistan Ltd said on Sunday it would sign an agreement with BOC Pakistan, formerly Pakistan Oxygen Ltd, for the supply of industrial gases for under-construction chemical plant.

"We expect to sign an agreement with BOC gases this week for supply of industrial gases to our PTA (pure terephthalic acid) plant", an ICI official said during a briefing.

A BOC official said his company would build two industrial gases plants at a total cost of 1.3 billion rupees ($37.42 million) near the PTA plant being built near Karachi's Port Qasim.

He said the BOC plants would start supplying hydrogen and nitrogen to the PTA plant by August 1997.

Gases for trial production of the PTA plant would be supplied by another BOC gases plant worth $200 million in the industrial zone of Hub, which is due to begin commercial production in May, the official said.

ICI plants to start commercial production at its PTA plant by November 1997. The plant will manufacture 400,000 tonnes of PTA, a raw material used in making polyester staple fibre.-Reuter