Calcutta, Oct. 27: Phillips Carbon Black Ltd (PCBL), an RPG group company, is in talks with the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu governments for a new plant — the largest by the company.

The company needs 400 acres, PCBL chairman Sanjiv Goenka said without specifying the investment in the plant and its capacity.

However, the availability of land and environmental clearance will determine the fate of the project. “We hope to set up a single unit if land is available. If not, we will set up two units in these two states,” Goenka said.

The proposed plant will come up near a port. The deal is expected to be announced in the next 15 days after PCBL gets land and environmental clearances. The location of the plant near a port will facilitate the import of feedstock and export of finished products.

At present, the Durgapur facility in Bengal has the highest installed capacity of 1.4 lakh tonnes.

PCBL will invest Rs 1,250 crore over the next three years in expansion, diversification and greenfield projects.

Meanwhile, PCBL’s net profit fell 24 per cent to Rs 24.27 crore in the second quarter from Rs 32.32 crore in the corresponding period last year. Goenka said the dip in profit was because of higher taxes paid during the period and lower profits from power trading. A price revision is expected in the next quarter.