German specialty chemicals major Lanxess has continued to bet big on the rapidly growing Indian market. The global company has now inaugurated a new blending plant at its chemical manufacturing site in Jhagadia, Gujarat. As part of the first phase of development, the facility will make specialty lubricant additives, for which the company has invested Rs150 crore. With this new facility, Lanxess reaffirms its long-term commitment to India as a strategic growth engine and to delivering world-class chemistries that power mobility and industrial applications worldwide.
The new plant represents a significant milestone for the lubricant additives business in India, strengthening its position in the region. Designed to serve both domestic and international markets, the facility will primarily cater to customers across India, the Middle East and other key global markets. The facility has been developed with a strong focus on safety, energy efficiency, and responsible environmental practices.
“India stands at the forefront of global economic growth, offering significant opportunities across industries,” says Hubert Fink, Member of the Board of Management at Lanxess AG. Our company is committed to deepening our presence in India and investing in its future, aligning our long-term strategy with the nation’s dynamic potential. Through prudent investments and a focus on sustainable growth, we aim to contribute meaningfully to India’s evolving industrial landscape.”
Lanxess’s lubricant additives business continues to scale its capabilities in India, building closer alignment between global strategy and local execution. The new facility is intended to support consistent delivery, faster response and stronger technical collaboration with customers, as demand evolves.
“India is the third largest lubricants market in the world and a key growth region for us,” acknowledged Neelanjan Banerjee, senior vice-president & global head, business unit lubricant additives, Lanxess, while speaking at the inauguration. “To participate in this key market, we set up our Application Technology Centre in 2025. The commissioning of this new production site in India is the next milestone for us and a strong testament to the ‘Make in India’ initiative. With this plant, we are reinforcing our strong commitment to our customers in the region. This facility strengthens our ability to reliably serve customers across India, the Middle East and other markets with high-quality, innovative lubricant additive solutions, with a local-for-local approach.”
Cutting-edge technologies
The company has also signed an MoU with Indian Oil Corporation, bringing its cutting-edge technologies to the Indian market. In addition, Lanxess has also started third-party manufacturing activities for the business unit ‘lubricant additives’ in India.
The €5.7-billion company, which underwent a major transition from primarily being a sheer polymer/basic chemicals maker to a speciality chemicals entity in the last decade (Lanxess 2.0), is pursuing its next growth strategy spanning over the next decade. Under the Lanxess 3.0 strategy, the company is looking to double its sales in India by 2028. Backed by its large portfolio of specialty chemicals catering to an array of industries, the company, which is now seeking to be closer to its customers, intends to come up with more customised solutions for its customers.
Towards this end, Lanxess set up its first India Application Development Centre (IADC) in Thane, Mumbai, last year, strengthening its innovation and customer service capabilities. The new application development centre represents our commitment to delivering solutions tailored to the needs of its local customers, while driving organic, innovation-led growth.
The IADC underscores Lanxess’ strategic focus on India as a key market and innovation hub, enhancing the company’s ability to deliver high-value, specialised solutions tailored to local needs. In a first step, it integrates expertise from two key businesses in India: lubricant additives (high-performance additives and additive systems, synthetic base fluids and ready-to-use lubricants) and material protection products (anti-microbial, disinfection and preservation solutions).
Over the last few years, the German major has expanded its existing capacities across its subsidiaries, including in India, where it has recently also set up a new production line at Jhagadia, Gujarat, for Rhenodiv – a high-quality technology tyre release agent. With this new facility, Lanxess India’s Rhein Chemie business now has enough capacity to not only cater to the growing Indian market but also to the Indian sub-continent and the Asian tyre and rubber goods market.