Red Iron Oxide Pigment

§1What this business is

Spent pickle liquor from steel plants carries 15–20% ferrous sulphate. In the report's first method, ferrous sulphate heptahydrate is reacted with sodium carbonate; the sodium sulphate is washed out and recovered, and the iron oxide is dried. A second method calcines the crystals with lime to make 'Venetian red' grades. The pigment goes into red-oxide primers for bridges and structural steel, and into plastics, rubber and ceramics.

Capacity: 1 tonne a day, 300 days — 300 tonnes a year; the report runs at 60% in year 1 rising to 100%.

§2Is it right for you?

Skills you need

• Chemical process control
• Effluent and acid safety
• Pigment testing (shade, purity)
• Selling to paint and primer makers

Why difficulty 4/5: Chemical handling, pollution clearance and a report with copy errors make this demanding.

§3Market

§4Raw material & machinery

From: PMEGP sample project report — Red Iron Oxide (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

• Ferrous sulphate heptahydrate300 tonnes a year at ₹22,000 a tonne in the report
• Sulphuric acid150 tonnes a year at ₹10,000 a tonne
• Sodium carbonate180 tonnes a year at ₹3,000 a tonne

From: PMEGP sample project report — Red Iron Oxide (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

§5Licences & registration

1. Udyam
2. GST
3. Consent to establish and operate from the State Pollution Control Board
4. Hazardous-waste authorisation if spent pickle liquor is handled
5. BIS standard IS 44 for iron oxide pigments (quality benchmark)

We can do this registration for you

§6Schemes & subsidies

• PMEGPCentralActive15–35% subsidy
• MudraCentralActiveLoan up to ₹20 lakh, no collateral
• CGTMSECentralActiveNo collateral, up to ₹10 crore

The report was written for PMEGP; CGTMSE covers collateral-free loans; MUDRA can fund part of the loan.

§7Money

How the investment is worked out: Samadhan report: the summary prints a project cost of ₹21.50 L, but its detailed cost table adds to ₹27.67 L — building/shed (5,000 sq ft) ₹5.00 L + plant & machinery ₹12.60 L + furniture ₹0.50 L + pre-operative ₹0.72 L + working capital ₹8.86 L. Its summary lines (product, raw materials) were copied from a magnesium sulphate report, so check the figures with a fresh report.

Working capital: Working capital ₹8.86 L (bank finance ₹7.98 L) for 30 days of raw material and 30 days of pigment.

Year not printed on the sample report — check current machinery prices.

How to prepare a loan file

§8Export potential

§9Risks — where people fail

• Pollution-rule violations
• Raw-material supply from steel plants
• Off-spec batches rejected
• Price pressure from large pigment makers

§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan

A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.

1. Days 1–30: Visit a working red iron oxide pigment unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
2. Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam, GST), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
3. Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.

§11Who to connect with

§12Watch

There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.

¶Sources

1. PMEGP sample project report — Red Iron Oxide (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.