Tanfac Industries is one of India’s largest makers of hydrofluoric acid (HF)-the corrosive, hard-to-handle building block of all fluorine chemistry-operating from a single 60-acre site in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu, since 1985. Originally a joint venture between the Aditya Birla Group and the Tamil Nadu government’s industrial arm, the company was reshaped in 2022 when specialty-chemical firm Anupam Rasayan acquired the Birla stake and took joint control, bringing new technical depth and a deliberate push downstream. The recurring idea that explains Tanfac is a step-by-step climb from making a dangerous commodity acid to using it captively in higher-value products-first solar-grade chemicals, next refrigerant gases-so that each new stage is fed by the one beneath it. # Business segments A single integrated platform with four layers of value addition-a commodity acid backbone, a high-purity solar-chemical business, a portfolio of specialty fluoride salts, and a refrigerant-gas plant under construction-each layer consuming the output of the one before. ## 1. Hydrofluoric Acid and Sulphuric Acid: the captive feedstock engine **The company makes its own sulphuric acid from molten sulphur, then uses that acid to produce hydrofluoric acid-so the two core raw materials are under one roof, and the surplus HF is sold to external customers while the rest feeds every downstream product.** - **Backward-integrated to sulphur** - Sulphur is converted into sulphuric acid in a 100,000-tonne-per-year plant that ran at 101% utilisation in FY26; that acid is then used captively to make HF, creating a chain from elemental sulphur all the way to finished fluorochemicals. - **One of India’s largest HF plants** - The HF capacity was doubled to 29,700 tonnes per year via a brownfield expansion commissioned in October 2024, completed in 17 months at what management calls the lowest per-tonne investment in the industry, making the Cuddalore site among the biggest HF plants in the country. - **The commodity anchor** - HF alone contributed 85% of revenues in FY26, and the company intends to channel the majority of its expanded output into high-end specialty fluoride molecules within its group. - **Safety as a barrier** - Handling hydrofluoric acid, sulphuric acid and oleum requires dedicated storage, double-armoured transfer lines, remote-operated valves and online respiratory systems; the company’s four-decade safety record and certifications make it hard for new entrants to replicate. - **Raw-material sourcing derisked** - Fluorspar and potassium carbonate are imported, and the company has widened its vendor base from a historic dependence on China to include South Africa, Thailand and Vietnam, while molten sulphur comes from a long-term tie-up with the nearby Chennai Petroleum refinery. ## 2. Solar Grade Diluted Hydrofluoric Acid: the high-purity first-mover bet **Tanfac is the first and only Indian manufacturer of solar-grade DHF, used to etch silicon wafers into solar cells, and has already locked in orders worth about ₹1,068 crore before its second production line was even commissioned.** - **First to market in India** - The company commissioned its first 5,000-tonne high-purity solar-grade DHF plant in June 2025 and doubled total capacity to 20,000 tonnes per year by October 2025, with a further expansion to 40,000 tonnes now proposed. - **Orders secured before full build-out** - Two long-term supply contracts-one with Kredence Electronics Materials for ₹732 crore and another with Krishna Organics for ₹336 crore-cover offtake through FY29, requiring no additional capex to fulfil. - **Feeds the solar and semiconductor supply chain** - Solar-grade DHF is used for cleaning and etching silicon wafers in photovoltaic cell manufacturing, and the company is already pursuing the next purity tier, electronic-grade DHF, for semiconductor applications. ## 3. Specialty Fluorides: the diversified derivatives portfolio **A range of fluoride salts and complexes-potassium fluoride, potassium bifluoride, boron trifluoride complex and others-serves pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and advanced materials, with R&D now pointed at next-generation fluoropolymers and battery chemicals.** - **Twelve-plus niche variants** - The portfolio spans fluorinating agents for organic synthesis, electrolytes for fluorine cells, Lewis acid catalysts, and fluxes for aluminium smelters, produced in a plant with \~135,000 MTPA manufacturing capacity. - **Synergy with the parent** - Anupam Rasayan is one of India’s largest users of potassium fluoride, and the acquisition gave it confidence to develop hydrogen-fluoride-based products for agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals and polymers using Tanfac’s output. - **R&D as the growth engine** - The Cuddalore lab houses expertise in vapour-phase fluorination, Halex reactions and side-chain fluorination, and has a pilot plant for refrigerants and monomers; the pipeline now targets electronic-grade chemicals, battery materials and high-performance fluoropolymers. ## 4. HFC-32 Refrigerant Gas: the downstream plant under construction **A ₹495-crore, 20,000-tonne-per-year HFC-32 plant is being built at the same Cuddalore site, with nearly two-thirds of its capacity already contracted to Japanese, multinational and Indian buyers before commissioning, which is targeted for Q3 FY27.** - **Forward integration from captive HF** - The plant extends the value chain from sulphur to sulphuric acid to HF and finally to HFC-32 refrigerant gas, giving Tanfac a cost edge through in-house feedstock. - **Demand riding India’s air-conditioner boom** - Domestic HFC-32 consumption of roughly 22,000-23,000 tonnes is expected to nearly double in four to five years as the room-AC market grows at 16-17% annually. - **Long-term contracts de-risk the ramp-up** - A seven-year deal with a Japanese customer covers 7,500 tonnes per year (₹337.5 crore annually), a five-year MoU with a multinational covers 5,000 tonnes (₹250 crore annually), and an indefinite agreement with Blue Star adds another ₹61 crore per year-together aggregating about ₹3,612 crore over five to seven years. - **Technology and export reach** - Process know-how comes from Buss Chemtech (Switzerland) and Chenco (Germany), with a separate Japanese partner for the refrigerant-gas tie-up; target export markets include Japan, the Middle East, Africa and Europe. # Group structure and partners **Tanfac is a joint-sector enterprise controlled equally by Anupam Rasayan India and the Tamil Nadu government’s TIDCO, with Anupam Rasayan driving day-to-day operations and technology while TIDCO provides institutional ballast.** - **Ownership reset in 2022** - Anupam Rasayan acquired the Aditya Birla Group’s 24.96% stake for ₹148 crore and completed a mandatory open offer, stepping into all rights under the original 1980 joint-venture agreement and becoming a co-promoter alongside TIDCO. - **Governance split** - So long as TIDCO holds 26% and Anupam Rasayan holds 25%, both have equal board seats; TIDCO appoints the chairman (with a casting vote), Anupam Rasayan appoints the managing director, and day-to-day management rests with the MD under board supervision. - **TIDCO’s put option** - The amended joint-venture agreement grants TIDCO the right to require Anupam Rasayan to buy its entire 26.02% stake at a price determined by the highest of seven specified formulae. - **No subsidiaries** - Tanfac has no subsidiaries, joint ventures or associate companies, and its shares are listed solely on BSE.