Nirma

1980
 
 - The Company was incorporated on February 25, as Private Limited
 Company to carry on the business of manufacturing and selling
 Synthetic
 Detergents, Soaps, Chemicals and Allied Products.  The Company is
 promoted by Shri Karsanbhai K. Patel.
 
 1993
 
 - The Company became a deemed public limited Company under Section
 43-A
 of the Companies Act, 1956 and was then converted into a Public
 Limited
 Company by passing a special resolution at the Extra-ordinary
 General
 Meeting held on November 08.
 
 - The Company proposes to set up a 1200 tpd (4,20,000 tpa) Soda Ash
 Project in technical collaboration with AKZO NOBEL ENGINEERING BV
 (AKZO) of Netherlands based on the Dry Lime Technology as a backward
 integration to the existing activities.
 
 - The company proposes to set up a facilities to manufacture Toilet
 Soaps with an installed capacity of 60,000 tpa and Synthetic
 Detergents
 with installed capacity of about 3,00,000 tpa.
 
 - The Company will be entering into a long term agreement with the
 Bhavnagar Municipal Corporation for providing of requisite quantity
 of
 sewage water.
 
 1994
 
 - The Company came out with its maiden public issue of Equity Shares
 of
 Rs.10/- each for cash at a premium of Rs.100/- per share aggregating
 for Rs.44.78 crores in February.
 
 - The Company also ventured into manufacture of Fatty Acid,
 Glycerine,
 Toilet Soaps, Sulphuric Acid and Alfa Olefin Sulphonate (AOS).
 
 - Nirma Ltd. has become a multi product company representing a wide
 array of product lines starting from Detergent Powders and personal
 care products like Toilet Soaps to chemicals like Sulphuric Acid,
 Glycerin, Alfa Olefin Sulphonates, Fatty Acids, Oxygen etc.  
 
 - The Brand name NIRMA is owned by Nirma Chemical Works Pvt. Ltd.
 which has given a non exclusive license to AME thereby allowing AME
 to
 use the Nirma brand trade marks.
 
 - The Company sells Sulphuric Acid, Oleum, Alfa Olefin Sulphonates,
 Glycerin and Oxygen directly to industrial consumers on a regular
 basis.
 
 - The Company has also installed 26 Wind Turbine Generators (WTG)
 with
 a capacity of 5.94 MW to generate power at Dhank Dist., Rajkot.
 
 - Nilnita Chemicals Limited will be amalgamated with the Company
 with
 effect from 1st April.
 
 - The Company is setting up a desalination facility for producing
 about
 200 cu. mtrs per day of soft water.
 
 - The Company proposes to establish R&D Centre at site for better
 waste
 utilisation and infrastructural betterment.
 
 - The Company has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with
 Indian Oil Corporation Ltd., for release by I.O.C.L. of 80,000 MTPA
 net
 of LAB feed stock in case the Company decides to establish a plant
 for
 the production of 80,000 MTPA of Linear Alkyl Benzene.
 
 - The company has also installed equipments for testing the
 bio-degradability of various surfactants.
 
 1995
 
 - The Company is setting up salt works facility at Kalatalav on
 25,000
 acres of land adjacent to its proposed Soda Ash plant for meeting
 its
 entire salt requirement.
 
 - The Company has entered into an Agreement with Humphrey & Glasgow
 Consultants Ltd. for Detailed Engineering, construction supervision
 including Civil and Architectural Designs and Procurement Services
 for
 the Soda Ash Plant.
 
 - The Company would be entering into Equipment Supply Agreement(s)
 with
 the Critical Plant & Equipment Suppliers which, inter-alia, should
 provide for performance guarantee of the equipment, penal provisions
 for non-fulfilment of guaranteed norms, delay in delivery and
 defects
 in workmanship/design etc.
 
 1996
 
 - During the year, Company has introduced Shampoo, which has been
 seed
 marketed and has been accepted well by the consumers.
 
 - During the year, on account of modernisation, Company has
 successfully manufactured IP Grade (Pharmaceutical Grade) Glycerin
 and
 the same has been well accepted and is in good demand.
 
 - The Company has technology tie up with UOP Inter Americana Inc.,
 U.S.A. who will be providing technical and basic engineering
 services.
 The Company has also tied up with Uhde India Limited for providing
 detailed engineering services.
 
 - Issue of 81,41,750 - 17% secured non convertible debentures and/or
 secured premium notes of the face value of Rs 200 each for cash at
 par
 aggregating Rs 162,83,50,000 alongwith four detachable warrants
 attached to each NCS/SPN, to the shareholders of the company on
 rights
 basis in the ratio of one NCD/SPN for every two equity shares held
 by
 them on 9th August.
 
 1997
 
 - Nirma is one of the country's largest detergent producers selling
 over 4.5 lakh tonnes of detergent and having the largest market
 share
 in the low value mass market brands.  Nirma, powder sells more than
 Hindustan Lever's Wheel, though Hindustan Lever is the largest
 producer
 of detergent and toilet soaps put together.
        
 - Nirma Ltd is launching a mega public offer totalling Rs. 350
 crore.
 The offer will be distributed through the 100 per cent book-building
 process, whereby the sale price of the share and the total size of
 the
 offer will be driven by demand for the stock.
 
 - Nirma is not only India's largest selling brand in detergent
 segment
 but is also the second largest manufacturer of toilet soap in the
 country.
 
 - Nirma Ltd has entered into a separate agreement with Nirma
 Chemical
 Works Ltd (NCWL), the trademark owner of the Nirma brand, for
 exports. 
 
 - Nirma has entered into a separate agreement with Nirma Chemical
 Works, the trademark owner of the `Nirma' brand, for exports.
 
 - The company has created Nirma Consumer Care Ltd. - a wholly owned
 subsidiary in August, which is the sole licensee of the brand name
 Nirma within India.
 
 - The 75,000 tpa linear alkyl benzene (LAB) plant was commissioned
 in
 December, at Alindra near Baroda in Gujarat.
 
 1998
 
 - ICRA has assigned an LAAA rating to the Rs.200 crore
 Non-convertible
 debentures programme of Nirma Ltd (NL), indicating highest safety.
 
 - The company Nirma has already announced successful completion of
 it's
 state-of-the-art 80,000 tpa Linear Alkyl Benzene plant.
 
 - Nirma is one of the few Indian companies that have matched the
 MNCs
 in the retail sales through innovative marketing strategies.
 
 - The firm has set up state-of-the-art packaging and printing units
 and
 will now directly produce key raw materials to improve product
 quality.
 
 1999
 
 - The edible salt market is set to witness a keen battle with a new
 entrant, Nirma Salt, about to hit the market.
 
 - The company is putting up a three-stage vacuum salt plant with an
 installed capacity of 280,000 tonnes a year.
 
 - The overall sales growth has been constrained due to a plant
 shutdown
 in the industrial product segment to manufacture N-Paraffin.
 
 2000
 
 - Nirma has decided to acquire the business of Kisan Industries for
 a
 cash consideration of Rs 200 crore with effect from 1st April.
 
 - Kisan Industries, having manufacturing facilities for detergents
 and
 fertilisers and for printing and packaging at Moraiya village in
 Ahmedabad district, had the right to manufacture 20 per cent of
 Nirma
 brand of detergents.
 
 - Nirma has decided to issue redeemable NCDs with a face value of Rs
 1,00,000 each at Rs 1,00,000 each, aggregating Rs 150 crores, in one
 or
 more tranches on private placement basis for a tenor of 350 days,
 carrying an interest rate not exceeding 11.5 per cent per annum,
 payable yearly.
 
 - Credit rating agency ICRA has retained the highest safety rating
 of
 `LAAA' to the Rs 200 crore non-convertible debenture programme of
 soaps
 and detergents major Nirma
 
 2002
 
 -Garners Rs 75 crore by issuing one-year floating-rate debentures
 
 -Undertakes manufacturing of toilet soap under the brand name 'Camay'
 for its subsidiary Nirma Consumer Care Ltd which obtains license from
 Procter & Gamble Home Products Ltd. Nirma Consumer Care Ltd launches
 the product on October 08, 2002
 
 -Closes down Bangladesh unit due to low sales volumes
 
 2003
 
 -Shareholders of the Company approve Scheme of Arrangement for
 Demerger of Operating Division of Nirma Industries Ltd with the
 company
 
 -Kicks off a fresh valuation of its two key brands namely, Nirma and
 Nima, together with the trademarks
 
 -Gujarat High Court approves Scheme of Arrangement for Demerger of
 Operating Division of Nirma Industries Ltd with the company
 
 2004
 
 Nirma Education and Research Foundation (NERF) has set up NirmaLabs,
 a not-to-profit Section 25 company with a corpus of over five crore,
 to nurture talented individuals in their pursuit of high-tech,
 knowledge-based wealth generation.
 
 - Karsanbhai Patel, promoter of the Ahmedabad-based detergents major
 Nirma Ltd, is becoming a venture capitalist. A Patel entity, Nirma
 Education and Research Foundation, has set up a new company,
 NirmaLabs, which will incubate talented individuals and projects.