By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, June 23, 2020: Union Chemical and Fertiliser Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on Tuesday reviewed the progress of Talcher plant in Odisha being revived at an estimated cost of over Rs 13,000 crore.

The minister took stock of the progress at Talcher Fertilisers Ltd (TFL), a joint venture firm promoted by GAIL, CIL, RCF and FCIL, an official statement said.

TFL is bringing up a urea unit of 12.7 lakh tonnes per annum capacity at Talcher, Odisha.

“When completed, it will be the first of its kind in India to employ coal gasification technology for production of urea. The estimated cost of the project is around Rs 13,270 crore,” the statement said.

The successful completion of the project will reduce India’’s dependency on imported urea, and is expected to create hundreds of direct and indirect employment.

Gowda admitted that the execution of the project has been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. He, however, underscored the need for TFL to compensating this delay to ensure the project is commissioned by stipulated deadline September 2023.