THOOTHUKUDI: Titanium dioxide (TiO2) pigment manufacturers are reeling under an acute shortage of ilmenite, the key raw material, leading to sharp production cuts and job losses in Thoothukudi.
Industry representatives have urged the Ministry of Mines (MoM) and the Tamil Nadu government to prioritise domestic supply, alleging that inadequate allocation by IREL (India) Limited has pushed units into distress.
TiO2 pigment, derived from ilmenite, is a crucial input for paper, inks, plastics, cosmetics, rubber, textiles and printing industries. It also has strategic applications in defence, aerospace, medical implants and electronics.
Of the five TiO₂ pigment manufacturers in the country, two are located in Thoothukudi. While one unit with a capacity of 15,000 tonnes per annum (TPA) has shut down operations, another plant with 18,000 TPA capacity has scaled down production due to insufficient ilmenite supply.
Following the Centre's move in 2019 to bar private players from beach sand mining, TiO₂ manufacturers have been dependent solely on IREL, the only licensed entity to mine and supply ilmenite in India.
However, members of the Beach Mineral Producers Association alleged that IREL has curtailed domestic supply while exporting ilmenite overseas, citing a lack of a value-chain industry within the country.
“As many as 189 shipments of ilmenite were exported to 34 foreign buyers in 2025,” association members claimed, citing data compiled by them.
An association member and Managing director of a city-based unit told TNIE that they receive only about 2,000 tonnes per month from IREL's Orissa Sands Complex (OSCOM), which has halved their annual production and forced them to downsize highly skilled technical staff.
He also flagged the logistical burden, stating that despite IREL operating a mineral separation plant at Manavalakurichi in Kanniyakumari, units in Thoothukudi are mandated to source ilmenite from Odisha, nearly 1,700km away by road.
Sources at another plant said they resorted to importing ilmenite from Australia and Brazil, escalating production costs. The unit eventually shut down in May 2025, resulting in the loss of employment for 250 graduates and 100 labourers.
The association further stated that nearly 80% of the domestic demand for Titanium dioxide in the manufacturing sector is being met through imports, with China alone supplying around 2.5 lakh tonnes of TiO2 pigment annually to India.
An official, however, pointed out that India imposed anti-dumping duties on Chinese TiO2 pigment in May 2025.
"Had the IREL units supplied to the operational capacities of the titanium pigment manufacturing companies, a sizable foreign exchange can be thus saved", said an industrialist.
Besides, the pricing and distribution should be rationalised by providing discounts for those procuring from OSCOM in Odisha considering its long distance. As coastal Tamil Nadu is rich in ilmenite, the union government must permit mining of ilmenite for the titanium dioxide companies to meet their production capacities, they appealed.
In a memorandum submitted to the MoM, the association urged the Union government to allocate sufficient quantities of ilmenite to domestic manufacturers, rationalise pricing and align policy support with the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
Responding to the concerns, a senior IREL official, on condition of anonymity, said supply constraints stem from dwindling production at the Manavalakurichi unit, where the mining lease has expired, and a fresh lease for a new project is yet to be granted. Though the plant’s total production capacity stands at 1.14 lakh tonnes per annum, it currently produces only about 42,000 tonnes of heavy minerals, the official added.
The proposal of IREL for new mining lease sprawling 1144 hectare along Kanniyakumari coastal line is pending with the District Coastal Zone Management Authority (DCZMA). As Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has exempted public hearing for the project recently, we foresee getting Environment Clearance (EC) for the mining of beach sand minerals, he said.