§1What this business is
LLDPE granules are mixed, melted in an extruder and forced through a die; the pipe is sized, cooled and pulled to a winder or cutter. An injection-moulding machine in the same unit makes drippers and fittings. In a drip system, water is filtered, sent through PVC or HDPE mains and LLDPE laterals, and let out drop by drop at the plant roots.
Capacity: The report prints installed capacity as 8 MT a year, which does not match its own sales of ₹566.42 L in year 1 at ₹102–104 a kg — treat it as a misprint and confirm with the machine supplier. Year 1 runs at 70%.
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
A plastics engineer or chemistry graduate with plastics experience and links to irrigation dealers.
Who it is not for
Someone who needs quick profits — margins in the report are slim.
Advantages
- Governments push drip irrigation with farmer subsidies
- Demand expected to grow about 15% a year (report)
- Greenhouses also use drip pipe
- Same unit makes drippers on its moulding machine
Drawbacks
- Very thin margin — raw material is about 87% of sales
- Break-even near 65%
- Sales depend on subsidy releases and crop seasons
- Large working capital for debtors
Skills you need
- Extrusion with tight wall thickness
- Dripper moulding
- Dealer network in farming areas
- Handling subsidy-scheme paperwork
Why difficulty 3/5: Simple extrusion but razor-thin margins and subsidy-linked sales.
§3Market
Who buys
- Farmers through irrigation dealers
- Drip-system installers
- Greenhouse and polyhouse builders
- State horticulture and agriculture programmes
How it sells
- Dealers in farming districts
- Registration under state micro-irrigation subsidy lists
Good to know
- The report suggests water hose pipe for irrigation as a later product.
- Training: CIPET, and technical help from polymer makers such as Reliance and GAIL (named in the report).
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| High-speed mixer | 1 | ₹1.50 lakh |
| LLDPE pipe extrusion plant | 1 | ₹25 lakh |
| Automatic injection-moulding machine (drippers and fittings) | 1 | ₹20 lakh |
| Scrap grinder | 1 | ₹1.50 lakh |
| Overhead water tank and recycling pumps | 1 | ₹0.90 lakh |
| Water cooling unit | 1 | ₹2 lakh |
| Testing equipment and accessories | 1 lot | ₹2 lakh |
| Pipe racks, small tools, lighting | 1 lot | ₹1.20 lakh |
From: SIDBI Stand-Up Mitra project profile — Drip Irrigation Pipes (2018) — private guide — confirm locally
- LLDPE granulestaken at ₹88 a kg; ₹491.96 L in year 1
- Other chemicals and additivesas per the pipe grade
From: SIDBI Stand-Up Mitra project profile — Drip Irrigation Pipes (2018) — private guide — confirm locally
In our raw material database
§5Licences & registration
- Udyam registration
- GST
- BIS ISI mark — state micro-irrigation subsidy programmes usually buy only certified, registered products
- State Pollution Control Board consent where applicable
- IEC code for export
§6Schemes & subsidies
- CGTMSECentralActiveNo collateral, up to ₹10 crore
- Stand-Up IndiaCentralClosed₹10 lakh – ₹1 crore loan
Too large for PMEGP; CGTMSE can guarantee the bank loan without collateral and Stand-Up India can fund SC/ST and women founders.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Land & building ₹30 L + plant & machinery ₹54.10 L + other assets ₹3.20 L + pre-operative ₹1.80 L + contingencies ₹8.41 L + working-capital margin ₹57.06 L = ₹154.57 L. Finance: promoter ₹46.37 L, bank ₹108.20 L.
Working capital: Gross ₹126.48 L (raw and packing material ₹57.63 L for 30 days, debtors ₹67.43 L, salaries ₹1.12 L, utilities ₹0.30 L); own margin ₹57.06 L.
Stand-Up Mitra profile uploaded in 2018; the year is not printed on the profile. Machinery and material prices will be higher now.
§8Export potential
Export council / board: Not verified yet
- No HS code or export body has been checked against an official list yet.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Delay in subsidy payments to dealers
- LLDPE price rise
- Competition from large irrigation brands
- Pipe failures in the field
§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan
A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.
- Days 1–30: Visit a working drip irrigation pipe (lldpe laterals) unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
- Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, GST), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
- Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.
§11Who to connect with
Associations, clusters and training institutes — the directory is being built. Connect
§12Watch
There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.
Want to start Drip Irrigation Pipe (LLDPE Laterals)?
DPR, loan file or registration — ask us on WhatsApp.
¶Sources
Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.