Note: This is a preliminary transcript and may contain inaccuracies. It will be updated with a final, fully-reviewed version soon.
SRF Limited (NSE: SRF) Q3 2026 Earnings Call dated Jan. 20, 2026
Corporate Participants:
Nikita Dhawan — Head of Corporate Communications
Ashish Bharat Ram — Chairman & Managing Director
Analysts:
Ankur Periwal — Analyst
Arjun Khanna — Analyst
Jason Soans — Analyst
Vivek Rajamani — Analyst
Abhijit Akela — Analyst
Unidentified Participant
Surya Narayan Patra — Analyst
Unidentified Participant
Madhav — Analyst
Unidentified Participant
Sanjesh Jain — Analyst
Meet Vora — Analyst
Unidentified Participant
Presentation:
Operator
Ladies and gentlemen, good day and welcome to the SRF Limited Q3FY26 earnings conference call. As a reminder, all participant lines will be in the listen only mode and there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions after the presentation concludes. Should you need assistance during the conference call, please signal an operator by pressing Star then zero on your touchstone phone. Please note that this conference is being recorded. I now hand the conference over to Mr. Ankur Periwal from Access Capital.
Thank you. And over to you sir.
Ankur Periwal — Analyst
Yeah. Thanks Steve. And good afternoon everyone for joining in SRF’s Q3 and 9 months FY26 post result earnings call. The management team will be represented by Mr. Ashish Bharatra, Chairman and Managing Director. The call will start with a brief management discussion on the earnings performance followed by an interactive Q and A session. I’ll hand over the floor to Nikita for her initial comments post which we can start the call in the Q and A. Over to you, Nikita. Thank you.
Nikita Dhawan — Head of Corporate Communications
Good evening everyone and welcome to SRF Limited’s Quarter 3 and 9 Months Financial Year 2026 Results Conference Call. Joining us today is our Chairman and Managing Director Mr. Ashish Bharatram. He will begin by sharing key highlights from our performance, covering developments across our businesses and financial performance. Following his remarks, we will open the floor for a question and answer session with him. Please note that any forward looking statements made during the call are subject to the disclaimer included in the earnings presentations shared earlier.
With that, I invite our TMD Mr. Ashish Bharatnam to deliver his opening remarks. Thank you.
Ashish Bharat Ram — Chairman & Managing Director
Thank you. Nitika. Good evening everyone and thank you for joining us today. I trust all of you have had the opportunity to go through our results and the presentation shared with you earlier. As we review our performance for quarter three financial year 26, I want to begin by acknowledging the resilience and agility our teams have demonstrated and navigating a dynamic and challenging environment. While the quarter presented its share of headwinds, we remain steadfast in our strategy and confident and remain confident about the opportunities ahead.
I’m pleased to share that during quarter three financial year 26, SRF delivered healthy performance across its key business segments along with a much improved bottom line. Despite ongoing global uncertainties, our focus on operational excellence, disciplined cost management and innovation helped us maintain steady momentum. Our gross operating revenue grew 6% to 3713 crores and EBIT was up by 23% year on year from 529 crores to 653 crores over the current period last year reflecting a margin of 18% PAT expanded by 60% year on year to 433 crores.
Coming to the Chemicals business Our chemicals business reported a revenue growth of 22% increasing from 1,496 crores in quarter three financial year 25 to 1825 crores in quarter three financial year 26. This performance was driven by higher refrigerant volumes realizations while enhanced operational efficiencies across both the fluorochemicals and specialty chemicals segments contributed to the overall performance in our specialty chemicals business. We have significantly enhanced our product mix and achieved notable improvements in operational efficiencies and process innovations over the past year, demonstrating our commitment to long term competitiveness and sustainability.
However, these advancements have not fully reflected in this quarter’s financial performance due to persistent pricing pressure from customers driven largely by rational pricing from Chinese competitors across some of our core product categories. In this scenario, we have consciously chosen to protect our market share and volumes. From our discussions with stakeholders, it is evident that Chinese players are finding it difficult to sustain these price levels and we believe that this situation is not viable in the long run.
When this correction will happen remains difficult to predict at this stage. We are also witnessing continued deferment and offtake for certain key products by agromajors. Encouragingly, agrochemicals used in crop protection are now showing signs of revivals. This, along with a strong pipeline for the coming quarter gives us the confidence to finish the year on a strong note. Our pipeline for new molecules on the agrochemical side remains extremely robust. In addition, our AI development journey is also progressing as planned, all of which should bode well for the future.
Our inroads into the pharma segment are also showing positive traction both in terms of the number of molecules we are dealing with as well as the number of customers we are developing. In light of this, we are adding a second pharma intermediate plant at an investment of 180 crores to come up at the head site which is expected to be commissioned in the next eight months. We continue to collaborate with global innovators on complex molecules, reaffirming SRF’s R&D leadership in delivering sophisticated solutions.
To date, we have applied for a total of 506 patents, including 5 filed during the quarter with 153 patents granted. Additionally, our sourcing initiatives have delivered strong results with the approval of several new raw material suppliers. This further reinforces our supply chain resilience and enhances operational flexibility supporting our long term agility. Coming to our fluorochemicals business, we have delivered a record quarter on all counts. The refrigeration gas segment performed exceptionally well despite this being a traditionally lean season supported by firm global HFC prices driven by China’s quota led supply restrictions and steady international demand.
The domestic market is also recovering well after a weak first half impacted by prolonged monsoons. Our plants are operating optimally and with the domestic season about to begin, we are well positioned to meet the expected uptick in demand. This should also help us to maximize the production quota under the Kizali framework. The Government of India’s recent imposition of anti dumping duty on R134 a currently does not impact us as global prices remain above the minimum threshold. Overseas markets, particularly Southeast Asia and the Middle east continue to show healthy growth, helping offset some of the volatility in the US market caused by tariff uncertainty.
As the tariff situation evolves, we will be better placed to assess its impact given the historical importance of the US as a key export destination. Chloromethanes delivered a steady performance through the quarter in ptfe. We are ramping up capacity and sharpening our focus on value added products rather than commodity offerings, an ongoing shift that is progressing well with benefits expected to become visible by early next year. Our upcoming projects for New Flora polymers remain on track. The Next Generation Refrigeration Gases project is also progressing well and will be housed at our new site in Odisha.
We have applied for the necessary regulatory clearances for the site which we hope to receive in the near future. We will share more on this during the annual conference call. The Performance Films and FOIL business reported revenue of 1,342 crores in quarter three financial year 26, a decline of 3% year on year but delivering higher EBIT of 95 crores when compared to Q3 financial year 25 of rupees 90 crores owing to lower volumes of MOPED and BOPP in the domestic market, the impact of GST 2.0 continued into this quarter as FMCG content companies were required to repack and reprint their products.
However, from December onwards we have started seeing signs of recovery in the domestic market for both BOPP and bopet. In recent weeks we have also seen some price improvement in BOPET from China which should bode well for us in the coming months. Our international operations remained stable during the quarter though seasonal weakness in December reflected in the quarter’s numbers. Performance in Thailand and Hungary continued to be affected by sustained competitive pressure from cheaper imports while South Africa delivered consistently strong results in aluminum foil, we delivered improved performance during the quarter driven by higher volumes while continuing to strengthen our export focus to build a more sustainable globally balanced business model that is less vulnerable to domestic market volatility.
Our continued emphasis on scaling value added products and advancing sustainable structures including Bilam PCR and Mono family films has enhanced our product differentiation and helped mitigate some of the market pressures coming to the status of our new projects. The BOPP Capacitor grade and the BOP lines are progressing web Together these initiatives will bolster overall business performance in the coming quarters and further strengthen SRF’s position as a comprehensive one stop packaging solutions provider.
Our technical textiles business reported revenue of 454 crores in quarter three financial year 26amid a challenging market environment, belting fabrics came under pressure due to aggressive Chinese pricing and a decline in demand following reduced conveyor belt exports to the us. These factors have weighed on margins despite operation progress on a positive note, we achieved a significant milestone with the Ecovada Silver Certification for Sustainability, reaffirming our commitment to responsible and sustainable business practices in our other businesses.
Our coated fabrics business. The domestic demand was soft this quarter especially for Jal Jeevan machine liners and volumes were impacted by cheaper Chinese imports. We expect demand to remain subdued in the off season and we’ll focus on tensile and semi tensile value added products to protect margins in laminated fabrics. The withdrawal of minimum import pricing on textile imports has intensified pricing pressure. While we continue to strengthen capabilities, margins are likely to stay under strain.
On the finance side, the Board in its meeting today approved a second interim dividend for rupees five per share entailing a cash outflow of 148.21 crores. This follows the first interim dividend four per share declared on 7-23-25. On the financial front, we are seeing benefits from global interest rate reductions. However, our forward positions on rupee dollar hedges have had a negative impact due to the unprecedented rupee depreciation, something we could not anticipate. While we expect the negative impact from forward covers to stay for a few more quarters, in general a weak rupee will be extremely favorable for us during the quarter.
We have also recognized an amount of rupees 73 crores due to the changes in the definition of wages post the Notification of the New Labor Codes by the Government of India and disclose the same under exceptional items in the financial Results based on FAQs issued by the Ministry of Labour and Employment and guidance provided by the Institute of Chartered Accounts, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. Additionally, based on a favorable order received from ITAC during the quarter, an amount of rupees 99 crores has also been recognized as credit to tax expense, CSR and Other Updates in quarter three financial year 26, SRF advanced its CSRFs with a strong focus on education and sustainability.
Over 200 teachers were trained in digital literacy and STEM initiatives engaged students through exhibitions and innovation fairs. Our digital bus reached nine villages benefiting more than 14,000 learners. Clean and green campus drives and Anganwadi programs promoted health and hygiene where infrastructure support under the PPP model strengthened nine schools. These initiatives reflect our commitment to holistic community development and empowerment. In quarter three, financial year 26, SRF received a prestigious recognition at the Huron India Family Business Excellent Awards.
Our Chairman Emeritus, Mr. Arun Bharatra was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award celebrating his visionary leadership. This accolade underscores SRF’s legacy of excellence, innovation and responsible business practices. To conclude, while this quarter reflects the realities of a volatile global environment, our fundamentals remain strong. We have a robust pipeline, a clear strategy and a committed team driving execution. With our upcoming projects and diversified portfolio, we are confident of delivering sustainable growth and creating long term value for all stakeholders.
Thank you for your continued trust and support and I would now like to ask the moderator to open the line for the Q and A session.
Questions and Answers:
Operator
Thank you very much sir. We will now begin the question and answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press STAR and one on their touchstone telephone. If you wish to withdraw yourself from the question, you may press star and 2. Participants are requested to use handset while asking a question. Ladies and gentleman, we will wait for a moment while the question queue assembles. The first question comes from the line of Arjun Khanna with Kotak Mutual Funds. Please go ahead.
Arjun Khanna
Thank you for taking my question. Sir, the first question is on our CAPEX outlook. So in light of what’s happening globally in terms of dislocation of trade, tariffs, etc. How do we envisage our CAPEX outlook going forward? In the second quarter we had given guidance of maybe 20 to 2300 crores of capex and if you could give us some sense of how do we see this pan out for FY27 to.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, I think broadly speaking we seem to be on track for that. A majority of what we are going to be doing is now going to be coming in the new site in Odisha. So I believe that irrespective of whatever volatility we may be seeing on the global front the transition to the new generation gases is something that is inevitable. And so we will be very much focusing on putting up the two plants for our new generation gases. And I think besides that we will obviously have to look at ancillary plants which will come up with that.
We have to take the board approval for that. But I believe that it’s, you know, when we actually get down to it, the first stage of investments in the Orisha site will probably be in the region of 1,500 to 2,000 crores. So in that sense I think the capex for financial year 2027 also remains on a strong wicket.
Arjun Khanna
Sure. So we did see a slight slowdown in FY25 where we spent roughly 1200 odd cr. Given what’s happening globally, you don’t believe that to be a reason to attenuate our capex going forward?
Ashish Bharat Ram
You know, I mean, I think you have to look at it from the perspective that based on the Kigali amendment, if the production and consumption of HFCs is going to come down, which we are seeing happening already, the world will need more of the new generation gases. So irrespective of whatever may happen, the demand for the new generation gases has to be met by somebody. So I think those who are going to be able to develop the technology and put up plants which are capex efficient and OPEX efficient are going to have the opportunity to really benefit.
And I think that’s the play that SRF has going forward.
Arjun Khanna
Sure sir. The second question is on. So in the presentation we have talked of in specialty chemicals, Chinese pricing competition to continue for the near future. At the same time we’ve talked of fourth quarter being substantially better for specialty chemicals. If you could help us understand, they seem to be slightly dichotomous.
Ashish Bharat Ram
I think we have to just look at it from the perspective that the fourth quarter is based on a lot of deferment that has happened over the quarter two, quarter three. So there is a lot of, let’s say pent up POS that have to be delivered in quarter four. But the second part which is about whether we are really seeing a big pickup is really where I’m saying that we are not 100% sure. We are still seeing that the Chinese pricing remains a bit of a challenge. But I think like I said in my remarks, I personally believe that if we can generate the returns that we are generating in such a subdued market, I am very optimistic for what lies ahead because you know, I mean based on whatever we’ve Seen and heard from competitors in China, majority of them are struggling at these levels.
So you know, I mean this seems to be the sort of the Chinese way where you come in and bombard the market with volume and low pricing. But at some stage, you know, people also need returns and I think that’s something that will change the environment in China going forward. I mean as I said again in my opening remarks, the question is not if, but the question is when that will happen.
Arjun Khanna
Sure, we’ve seen that in ref gas so let’s hope it happens in other segments. Sir, at the same time, just a continuation, we have talked of early signs of Chinese increase across petrochemicals for the performance film segment. So in terms of Bopp bopet, are we seeing expansion in margins?
Ashish Bharat Ram
So I think the Chinese part was linked more to the Bhoped Arjun. Clearly in Bhoped we have seen that there seem to be some sort of instruction that was sort of given to the industry from let’s say authorities in China that they need to look at becoming more profitable rather than just producing. So the mandate that was given was to cut back on capacity by 20% and that happened in December and as a result we’ve already seen some increase in pricing. The mandate also says that post the lunar New Year, the lunar holidays, they are supposed to cut back further on the capacity.
Let’s wait and see what happens in that. If that actually happens, then I guess we will see further expansion in the margins.
Arjun Khanna
Sir, this is part of that anti involution drive,
Ashish Bharat Ram
Correct? Correct.
Arjun Khanna
Sure. Thanks so much and wishing you all the best sir.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you. Thank you.
Operator
The next question comes from the line of Jason Sones with IDBI Capital. Please go ahead.
Arjun Khanna
Yes
Jason Soans
Sir. Yeah, thank, yeah, thank you so much for taking my question, sir. So the first question just pertains to, I mean you did say that you’re expecting good pickup on the acum side in Q4. Just wanted to know what gives us the confidence for this and are we seeing some enhanced order visibility for our key products here?
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, I think it’s, I mean like I said, I mean, you know, you know when you have a subdued Q2, Q3, a lot of it is just pent up POS that customers wanted delivery from in this year. I mean I think everybody is going through this phase where nobody wants extra inventory on December 31st. So I guess it’s a lot of this thing. We saw the same trend last year also if you look at our numbers and it’s the same thing where we’ve already Got pos, which we have to basically act upon in quarter four.
Jason Soans
Sure, sure. And just in relation to that, I mean, of course inventory in the channel must be at reasonable levels. So any particular reason for this deferment of this key Actium products which are. Which. Which you have mentioned?
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, I think, I mean my, you know, it’s very difficult to quite comment on this. I think the, you know, my hypothesis if you ask me is just that supply chain challenges eased out tremendously after Covid, you know, so, you know, when we saw the boom in the COVID years, you know, I mean, there were massive supply chain challenges and you know, it would take people, you know, months to get their inventory and so on. And I think in today’s context they know that, you know, if suppliers have to get around to doing it, it should not take very long to do it.
So I think it’s just a comfort of knowing that material will be available.
Jason Soans
Sure, sure, sir. And just finally. So I just wanted to understand, I mean, you have penciled in a capex of 180 crores for the pharma, for the second pharma plant. Just if you could give us some more color, sir. On Because AC chemists have been mainstay, is our mainstay in the chemicals, the specialty chemicals part of it. So just wanted to more color on this. Like what opportunities are we exactly seeing on the ground for this and how much can we scale it?
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, so Jason, if you, I mean, you know, we have always mentioned or always maintained that, you know, we will continue to grow agro, but we also want to de risk from agro. And I think, you know, a great example of why we want to do that is precisely because of what we are seeing happening. You know, we’ve seen happen over the last two years that agro cycles can be quite vicious in their own way. So, you know, it’s not that, you know, by any means we are saying that we are not going to grow at agro, we want to keep growing in agro, but we also want to de risk.
And I think that’s really why the pharma story was something that we were building on. And I think, you know, you guys are more experienced interacting with pharma companies across the nation that, you know, pharma is a much tougher nut to crack. And I think it’s just taken us a long time to crack. But today we are starting to see a lot of visibility on in terms of the molecules we have. So I think the number of molecules we are working on have gone up dramatically. The number of customers with whom we are dealing have also gone up.
And I think there is a fundamental confidence that what we have today as capacity in our pharma intermediate plant number one is not ample for us to take care of what lies ahead. And you know, again, as an entrepreneur, as a businessman, you need to take calls in advance rather than wait for to be, you know, wait to be reactive. You know, I think you have to be proactive if you fundamentally believe that there is an opportunity that lies ahead. And I think that’s something that we’re starting to see.
Jason Soans
Sure. Thanks a lot for answering my question, sir. Thank you so much.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Vivek Rajamani with Morgan Stanley. Please go ahead.
Vivek Rajamani
Hi sir, thank you so much for the presentation. Just sir, with respect to your opening remarks, when you mentioned about the tariffs, could you just give us a sense of what is the impact that you’ve seen for this quarter, whether by way of volumes or whether you’ve had to change some geographic locations and just in terms of customer conversations, are you seeing any sort of impact from this? Thank you.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, so I think it’s a bit of a mixed bag. I mean everybody is, instead of committing to larger volumes of what they want to pick up, everybody is literally picking up volumes from a month to month perspective. So I think if, you know, in the past when we used to do a lot of our ref gas trades, we would look at doing an annual contract. So first of all, we’ve got to be clear that R134A does not fall under the tariffs. So in R134A we’ve been able to do long term contracts and that’s a relationship that has not got affected with the tariffs.
But R32 does fall under the tariffs. And so instead of doing long term contracts with some of the customers we had, everybody is sort of doing a wait and watch and it’s more transactional than relationship oriented. And I think when you’re sort of looking at a big animal like the US you always want to be clear of what’s the sort of volume you need to keep aside for the US and then play with the other markets. And here we are having to play with the other markets and then see what comes out from the U.S.
And within the U.S. Also, everybody is talking about the fact that even if you ship something today, we have no idea what the tires will be by the time they get to us. So I think all that uncertainty just makes People more sort of averse. So people are. I’m not saying they’re not buying, they are buying, but buying with a lot of, let’s say, trepidation and buying literally, you know, what they need to without really, you know, sort of, you know, I would say running the business the way they want to.
In our packaging business, yes, we’ve had to play around in the sense that we have moved some of the US business to our plant from Thailand. So we are doing some of that from Thailand, but that’s not an ideal situation because we were always more comfortable servicing from here. Freight rates from Thailand to the US are substantially higher than the freight rates from India. So we do lose some of these other costs that we would not have lost earlier on.
Vivek Rajamani
Sure, sir, that was very, very helpful. Just wanted to follow up any comments on the acium part of the business.
Ashish Bharat Ram
To be honest with you, I think I’ve already said whatever I had to on the adc and there’s really not much I can add. I mean, like I said, we have to wait and watch. Our internal strategy is to keep our pipeline as robust as we can. It is more robust today than it was earlier. We have a lot of AIs in the pipeline. We have to wait for them to be registered with the customers. So I think it’s just a question of being patient because, I mean, I genuinely believe the cycle has to turn. It cannot remain the way it is.
And till then, we will keep working on our cost efficiencies and making sure that we don’t lose market share to any of the. To our competitors.
Vivek Rajamani
Very clear. So, thank you so much. Just one small bookkeeping question for me. If you could just have the domestic and the export mix for your specialty in the refcas business, that’d be really helpful. Thank you so much.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, I think maybe you can connect with the IR team separately and I think, you know, we’ll get them to share that with you.
Vivek Rajamani
Yeah, sure, sir. Thank you so much and all the very best.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you.
Operator
The next question comes from the line of Abhijit Khela with Kotak Securities. Please go ahead.
Abhijit Akela
Yeah, thank you so much for taking my question, sir. So, first of all, on the specialty chemicals business, would it be possible to just share the revenue growth that we’ve seen in the first nine months of the year?
Ashish Bharat Ram
I think, you know, our policy is that we don’t differentiate between fluorochemicals and specialties. So that’s not something that we can share. And
Unidentified Participant
Probably, Vijit, maybe we’ll be able to talk about more on this in the annual conference call where we just talk about between SCB and FCB separately.
Abhijit Akela
Okay, sure. Thank you. The other thing was just on the chemical segment margins there seems to be some quarter on quarter moderation sequentially, you know, about 170, 180 basis points sequentially. So just what might be the reasons for that? Is it primarily coming from specialty chems or something else? Could it be a tariff?
Ashish Bharat Ram
No, no, I think it’s coming definitely from the specialty chem. I said that, you know, the specialty chem business has had a more challenging time. So it has come from there. But I think, you know, I’m sure that you’ll see a better performance in quarter four.
Abhijit Akela
Okay. As far as R32 is concerned in terms of sharing the tariff impact with customers, I mean any sort of broad outline of how discussions are shaping up.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Sorry, give me a second. Yeah, so I think like I said, it goes literally, you know, I mean consignment to consignment. So depending on how it’s happening, you know, we normally work with the price range saying that if for any reason, you know, the 25% gets cancelled, the price will be X. If the 25% additional tariff remains, it will be. Yes. And then if there is a moderation in the base 25% which we have on India, then we will talk about the pricing. But there is obviously a trust factor that is also involved when we actually do the final.
When we do the final pricing. But obviously nothing has changed in the last six months.
Abhijit Akela
Got it. No, that’s really helpful. Thank you so much. And just one last thing. Our 32 hour capacity I believe is somewhere in the range of 27, 28,000 tonnes at present. Are there any thoughts that we could divert some of our capacity from the other HFCs, be it 134A or 125 towards R32 sometime in the future.
Ashish Bharat Ram
So all I can say at this stage is I would rather not talk about what our capacity is or not. I think that’s something that we believe is something that will be important. It’s part of our important strategy to create a baseline so what our capabilities are and not. I would rather keep quiet about it at this stage.
Abhijit Akela
Okay, sir, thank you so much and wish you all the best.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Surya Narayan Patra with Philip Kaptil. Please go ahead.
Surya Narayan Patra
Yeah, thanks for the opportunity. Sir, my first question is on the EU carbon tax. What you have indicated in the presentation. So in what way that we are likely to have impact whether the ref gas business or even the specialty chemical exports will see some kind of impact because of this. Which implemented from the. 1St of January by Europeans I think.
Operator
Mr. Sunya, could you please repeat your question? Can you answer please?
Surya Narayan Patra
Yeah, Am I audible right? I was asking, I was asking about the EU carbon tax which is got implemented from the 1st of January and I think we have mentioned that also in our presentation. So whether it is the ref gas business that we are talking about having seen some kind of impact because of this or even the speciality chemical expert also likely to have some impact.
Ashish Bharat Ram
So we don’t do any refcas business in Europe at the moment. So there’s no impact in the refcas business at all. There is a potential impact aluminium foil business but very honestly speaking I think with where the cost of manufacturing in Europe is, we don’t see this to be a risk. I think we just flagged it because it is something that has got notified. Having said that, I think, you know, I believe that there is some talk that under the India EU FTA there is going to be talk about the CBAM as well.
So I think we just need to wait and watch. It’s nothing that is of significance of any significant nature at the moment.
Surya Narayan Patra
Sure sir. Second question was about the pharma intermediate business. See in fact we have been seeing some challenge for the agri intermediate or agri supplies specialty chemicals. But pharma it seems that, okay, it has been very steady and but if you can talk something about it, what is the progress on that side, what is the mix right now in terms of the within the specialty chemical business and our outlook and what are the kind of general capex that we are trying to build up for the pharma intermediate business going ahead given the view that you have provided just some time before.
Ashish Bharat Ram
So I think, I mean at the moment, broadly speaking the pharma business may be in the region of maybe close to 10% of our total business. And we always said that we want this to go to at least 20% of our share. Again with the perspective that we want to grow agro but to grow pharma at a faster pace. And like I mentioned in one of the earlier questions, I think we are starting to see the momentum on the pharma side and that’s really why we’re going with this pharma intermediate plant number two is because we feel that we now need the, we need that plant based on the number of molecules etc.
We’re working on. I’m not saying that we are going to get to 20% overnight, but I think we are clearly on the track to start moving in that direction.
Surya Narayan Patra
Sure. Just last one point, sir. On the Capex front, is there a need for expanding capacity within HFC before you create capacity for the new generation gas?
Ashish Bharat Ram
I don’t think we are. I mean if anybody is expanding HFC capacity right now, I mean they have to have a reason to do it. Because I don’t think that under Kigali amendment we can.
Surya Narayan Patra
Okay, sure. Okay. Thank you, sir. See you. All the best.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you.
Operator
The next question comes from the line of Mahimarad with Tiger assets. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Good evening, sir. Am I audible?
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah. Are you speaking from the speakerphone or from the handset?
Unidentified Participant
Yeah. Am I audible, sir?
Unidentified Participant
You’re better. Yeah.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Okay.
Unidentified Participant
Okay. So sir, my question is what is the current demand versus supply situation in the fluorochemicals market in terms of capacity?
Ashish Bharat Ram
I’m not in the. What, in what context is the question? I’m over. Fluorochemicals is a very broad word.
Unidentified Participant
So R32.
Ashish Bharat Ram
R32, the domestic demand is, I mean our analysis says probably in the region of probably 18,000, 17, 18,000 tons is the domestic demand, not more than that. And you know, capacity, I think each, you know, you can capacity substantially more than that. And that’s why I think everybody is exporting as well. But over time, as Indian demand grows, obviously the perspective would be that we would reduce our exports and start selling more in India.
Unidentified Participant
Okay, okay, so that’s helpful. So the next question is with new players in the floral space, how do we foresee the impact of R32 prices over the next six to 12 months? And what is the risk softening as competition increases?
Ashish Bharat Ram
See again the whole problem, I mean the question or the premise is that competition will increase. But the problem in the question to really ask is, you know, competition can only come in for 27. For 28 onwards, competition can only be or based on the baseline of 24, 25, 26. So if you’ve not had production in 24, 25, 26, you’re not going to have any baseline for 28 going forward. So if somebody sets up capacity, they may be able to sell whatever capacity they have in 27, but they’re not going to get any quota from the 1st of January 28th.
So, you know, I mean, what will happen then? I don’t know because it will obviously go to. The quota will go to the people who are producing at the moment. So and in the short term, I think we all have to remember that the big daddy in the room is really China. So as long as China keeps prices at the levels that it keeps it at, then prices should remain stable, firm. And again, all that we’ve seen in terms of data is over the last three months there have been absolutely negligible imports from China.
The tendency in the past used to be that in the off season, which is from October to December, China would obviously export a lot of material which would then come into India free the summer season. But this year there have been no imports from China in the last three months. Like I said, very, very negligible imports. So I think broadly speaking, the demand supply situation in India should remain fairly firm in the short term as well.
Unidentified Participant
Okay, sure. That’s really helpful. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Madha with Fidelity. Please go ahead.
Madhav
Yeah, so I just wanted to, I think you kind of answered it in the previous question, but on the quotas for R32, like you said, people who are now kind of realizing and setting up capacity at the FAG end of the quota determination period, you know, how do you see those capacities playing out? I guess you could probably answer that, but just any incremental thoughts will be helpful.
Ashish Bharat Ram
No, I think, yeah, really, because nothing more to add, you know, I mean, the quota regime is, you know, something where Prashant Gadav, our president and CEO also did a session on this five, six months ago, explained it in detail. I think there is a document that anybody can read which is there on, you know, the Kigali amendment. And so it is the baseline production of 24, 25, 26 that is going to give you the quotas going forward. And I think India has always been a country that is abided by its commitment on any global platform.
So we’ve seen this in the past and I don’t believe that India will leverage on any commitment on the global platform. So it is going to be the average production of 24, 25, 26 that will become the basis for the quotas going forward.
Madhav
Understood, got it. And just a second one, you know, there are these other sort of on the agro business as well. Any view on when do you see the cycle picking up, like what could be sort of the lead indicators that one could look out for to get a sense on when this would sort of pick up again for us? Yeah, I
Ashish Bharat Ram
Think, I think, yeah, I think, you know, you look for small things in the sector. Sorry, like I mentioned, you know, we Started seeing some pickup in demand for crop for crop chemicals. I think when you start seeing the increase in demand for crop chemicals then there is a sign that obviously these companies have to start looking at now building their inventories again. So I mean I guess that’s a starting point and if that stays then obviously it’ll be helpful. My gut tells me that somewhere on the global platform trade of things like soya etc need to get back to some normalcy.
If you start seeing some normalcy there then I think you will start seeing the crop protection business also getting back to some normalcy.
Unidentified Participant
Thank you so much.
Operator
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Sanjay Chen with ICIC Securities. Please go ahead.
Sanjesh Jain
Yeah, good evening sir. Thanks for the opportunity. Couple of questions from my side. First on the active ingredients that we are working. So earlier in the call we said that one AI we are expecting to launch in FY26 and couple of them in FY27. Are we on track for that?
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yes, things stand right now, Sanjay. We’re pretty much on track for that. We believe the registration for one of them has happened so we should see the launch in the coming year. Hello.
Sanjesh Jain
Yes sir.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, okay. I said like we believe the registration for one of them has happened so we should see the launch in the coming year. So I think, you know, I mean broadly speaking as things stand right now, no reason to believe I should be anything else.
Sanjesh Jain
Got it sir. Second on the farmer now we have been speaking for it like last seven, eight years and finally nice to hear good progress there but can you give some color? Are we working with the innovator or we are still in the starting KSM or we are looking at advanced intermediate. We still have only one CGMP plant and this new plant will be a CGMP plant or a non CGMP plant. More color? No, this will
Ashish Bharat Ram
Be a non CGMP plant. But I think with all due respect on the pharma side maybe I will share more of this in the annual call because I think there seem to be more questions around it which I was not completely prepared for. So I think at the annual call we will share more about what our strategy on the pharma side will be.
Sanjesh Jain
One last question on the specialty chemical at the start of the year we expected a 20% growth in the segment overall chemical. We are tracking the guidance but within that do you think this year we will fall short of the 20% growth in specialty?
Ashish Bharat Ram
For sure. I mean I think if anybody is seeing that they will be able to do Some miracles in the agro this year. I mean, I would love to meet them. I think everybody is going through a tough time on the agro. Sanjay, you know, there’s no, you know, while the team is doing its utmost to do whatever it can, but there are challenges which are really beyond our control at this stage.
Sanjesh Jain
And this is more pricing led or it’s more volume and pricing? Both. We are seeing pricing,
Ashish Bharat Ram
I would say largely pricing led. So that’s why you will see that that’s, you know, the market. You know, the earlier question that, you know, EBIT margins have fallen is also linked to the fact that yes, they have fallen because that’s the impact on the specialty chemical side. I mean, I don’t want to share more, but obviously you guys do your own calculation. So Fluorochemicals, you know, has done well because of hfcs. So yes, we have, we are, we are facing headwinds in specialty chemicals that we have to deal with.
Sanjesh Jain
One last question on the fluoropolymer side. When do we expect the supplies on the Chemos contract to start? And if you can give more color on that contract and timeline, that will be really helpful.
Ashish Bharat Ram
So Sanjish, we will see the plants coming up in the course of this calendar year. We are working very closely with the team. Obviously there is a lot of learning for us because some of the equipments that we are having to put are equipments we have never dealt with. Now we have to buy equipments from some companies in Europe we have never dealt with. So there is a learning process. I think it is important to understand that a company like Chemoz is not looking at doing this just as a one off. I think it is very important to understand that they believe that there is a larger partnership opportunity that they can build on with a company like ours.
I think you guys, I mean at this stage for me to share more in terms of where this can go would be incorrect. But I think all I can. All I would like to say is that this is really a starting point of a relationship with Chemos in terms of manufacturing for them and supplying to them. But over a period of time, I believe this is a relationship that can really get enhanced quite substantially.
Sanjesh Jain
Got it. Just. Just one follow up there. That means for a supply we would wait a new fluoropolymer plant to start and then only we will supply the PTFE and the new floral fluoropolymer together or TFE will start early.
Ashish Bharat Ram
No, no, we are not supplying TFP to them. TFP cannot be transported Because TFP has to be used.
Sanjesh Jain
PTFE
Ashish Bharat Ram
Was never part of the transaction. PTFE was never part of the transaction. This is for really much higher end fluoropolymers. So these are the plants that are coming up in this calendar year and those are the ones we’ll be supplying to them.
Sanjesh Jain
That’s, that’s very clear. Thanks. Thanks Ash for all those answers and
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you. Thank you very much.
Operator
The next question comes from the line of Meet Vora with MK Global. Please go ahead.
Meet Vora
Yeah, thanks for the opportunity. So the first one was we have mentioned in our presentation that we continue to fully utilize our HFC capacities. In that context, how should we look at the overall volume growth in HFCs over next say two to three years? Or maybe there will be only pricing led growth till the time we create capacity for next generation gases. How should one look at that?
Ashish Bharat Ram
I mean, I think, you know, you understood the quota regime where you spend enough time, there is no question of having more capacity come in. Capacity is. Now I’ve already said this at least five times in the call, that capacity is really going to be based on the baseline of 24, 25, 26. So anybody who’s putting up capacity now needs to figure out what they will do with it later. So there is no additional capacity that SRF can put up? I think SRF has put up whatever it can. It just has to make sure that we maximize the production within that capacity to whatever extent.
Meet Vora
Yeah, understood. No, I was asking more from the angle that you are already fully utilized with your capacity and baseline. The one year is still left from that angle I was asking.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, but I’m saying The baseline is 26, only calendar year 26. So I mean whatever it is, we have to maximize production this year and then, you know, go for it. That’s it.
Meet Vora
Correct. Yeah, understood that. And so second question was. So you mentioned that in the last three months there have been no imports. My understanding is that there could be because of anti dumping duties on Chinese imports on R32. So it would not make sense for an importer to import and sell and.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Duty. And R32 has been there for three years.
Meet Vora
Okay. And sir, this would be going for a review in December this year. Right? Any expectation around that?
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, I mean we will go for a review. I mean at this stage, but very honestly speaking, obviously it’s going to be a very difficult case to justify. But if pricing remains healthy, which we believe it will be, because that’s what all the signs from China seem to indicate, then I think These are prices because India’s pricing is, I mean today, very honestly speaking, quite independent of even anti dumping. These are the prices that are there globally. So whether I’m looking at prices in India or I’m looking at prices in Southeast Asia or elsewhere, the prices are firm everywhere.
Meet Vora
Correct? Correct. Okay, that’s all from my side. Thank you and best of luck for coming. Quarters.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you.
Operator
The next question comes from the line of Vaishnavi Gurung with Craving Alpha Wealth Fund. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Hello.
Operator
Oh yes ma’, am. You’re audible. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Thank you for taking the question, sir. My first question is on the overall revenue growth basis, the chemical business has been growing in double digits. However the other segments.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Sorry Vaishnavi, I’m not able to understand what you. Are you speaking from the speakerphone or the handset?
Unidentified Participant
The handset.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah. Okay, let’s try.
Operator
We are unable to hear you.
Unidentified Participant
Hello? Is it better?
Operator
Yeah, please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Yeah. So my first question is on the overall growth pages. So basically our chemical business has been on double digit. However the other segments is kind of moderating that growth. So I just wanted to understand is it majorly because of the Chinese imports and tariffs or is there any other thing that is impacting it and when can we expect to normalize this impact?
Ashish Bharat Ram
I think the other segments, like I said already because there was excess capacity in India, both in Bhoped and Bopp and there was obviously low pricing from China, prices were subdued. As I said from December onwards we saw some changes in pricing out of China. And I think that’s starting to get reflected in Indian pricing also from January. So to that extent, once that starts happening, you will see obviously some revenue growth in the segment of packaging as well. I think technical textiles, it’s not that we’ve added any capacity or we are adding any capacity.
So that’s going to remain range bound, pretty much dependent on where raw material pricing is. But yeah, in packaging I think you will see in, sorry, performance films you will see some increase in revenue going forward.
Unidentified Participant
Okay, so thank you. And I wanted to understand the competition globally from Chinese companies with respect to R32 gases.
Ashish Bharat Ram
So I think you got to understand that, you know, I mean in China there are numerous producers of R32 but there is also a quota regime that exists in China. So each company in China has been given a clear quota in terms of how much they can produce and how much they have to close. And so that started last year and you know, it’s the same process that exists this year and it will be the same process that will exist going forward. And so, you know, I think that’s basically ensured that there is a pretty good balance today in terms of demand and supply for 32.
Unidentified Participant
In terms of price, sir.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Prices are pretty. This thing you can see. I think they’re broadly in that, you know, sort of $7 range or whatever it is from China. That’s really where the pricing is.
Unidentified Participant
One question on the demand deferment on the last quarterly con call. Also, you mentioned that they’re expecting better demand in H2 owing to demand deferment from H1. So did we see any impact there in quarter three?
Unidentified Participant
Your question is on specialty chemicals, right?
Ashish Bharat Ram
Yeah, so I think specialty, like I mentioned, you know, I mean, we were expecting a demand revival, but a lot of that has moved forward to quarter four. Like I said, quarter four is going to be significantly better than quarter three because we do have POS on hand. But it is not, please, like I said, it’s not that we are suddenly seeing that the, you know, I mean, scenario is changing dramatically. We believe that, you know, as we keep expanding our portfolio, we will see some opportunities going forward.
But fundamentally, that sector is still going through a tough time.
Unidentified Participant
Okay, thank you. And last question is on the overall chemical business. So I wanted to understand what percentage of growth is driven by refrigeration gases currently.
Ashish Bharat Ram
I think that is something that, you know, we, like I said, we don’t differentiate between specialty and fluorochemicals. We will give you that number once a year at the annual distinct call.
Unidentified Participant
That’s it from my side. Thank you so much.
Ashish Bharat Ram
Thank you.
Unidentified Participant
The
Operator
Next question comes from the line of Raghav with Tiger Assets. Please go ahead.
Unidentified Participant
Yeah, hello. Am I audible?
Surya Narayan Patra
Yeah, you are.
Unidentified Participant
Hi. Hi, sir. Namaste. So basically, so I just wanted to. Understand, you know, a player like Tanfac. Okay, they have, you know, decided to put 20,000 metric turn off, you know, R32. And I think that is, you know, what my understanding is that might be coming live in, you know, Q3 of Next Financial year. So how do you see that, you know, shaping up for them then? Because, you know, I mean, they are undergoing a very large capex as well. Behind that. You know, with the system coming in.
Ashish Bharat Ram
So I think it’s very, I mean, for me to comment on what another company is doing is incorrect. I think, you know, we are fairly clear about where the quota regime is. We are fairly clear about how it works because we’ve been through it in the past. And like I said, I have full faith that the Indian government will abide by its commitment on the Kigali amendment. And so, you know, if somebody is doing whatever they’re doing, you know, I think it’s a question that you should ask them, not us.
Unidentified Participant
I mean if some, you know, if such a large company, you know, they are undergoing such a large capex, I’m sure so they must have, you know, taken some approval internally with the Indian government, you know, or else, I mean, I mean no company can afford to let go of 500 capex go wayside. So just wanted to understand from you. Sir, because you would be having a, you know, ground view and a holistic as well.
Ashish Bharat Ram
I’ve said it, you know, people have asked me why we are not expanding in hfc. I’ve explained to you why we are not because we don’t believe you can expand in HFC right now. But like I said again, it’s a company, it’s another company is doing something. It’s very incorrect for me because you know, I think we’ve understood how the protocol works and that’s why we’re doing what we’re doing. And if their understanding is different, you should ask them. And also understand that there are two elements.
Giving an EC for putting up a plant is independent of how the Kigali amendment works. So I mean if I went today and told the government I want to put up a 50,000 ton plant, I could get an EC from the government for putting up that plant. But what I do with that plant as a result of the Kigali amendment are two absolutely independent issues.
Unidentified Participant
Okay. And so I just wanted to understand. Today what is the capacity of R32. In China by any chance? And you know, are we.
Ashish Bharat Ram
See R32? You also got to understand there is a lot of fungible capacity between 134A32. The whole Kigali amendment works on GWP basis. Okay? So the 134A has a higher GWP than 32 and so on. So it’s a very complex thing to say what is the capacity and so on because it’s fungible between 134A and 32. And the other thing is it’s also fungible between 125 and 134A. So depending on how people have put up their plants, all this is possible. So not a straightforward answer to be able to give in terms of what is capacity.
China as a country by the way has decided to give quotas on a product basis, not even GWP basis. So China has even gone one level beyond GWP saying that this is the amount of 32 you can make, this is the amount of 125, this is the amount of XYZ HFC you can make. So they’ve been absolutely sort of, you know, point blank that they don’t want excess production of any particular hfc.
Unidentified Participant
Okay, thank you sir. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Thank
Ashish Bharat Ram
You.
Operator
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen. That was the last question for today. I now hand the conference over to the management for closing comments.
Nikita Dhawan
I hope we have been able to answer your questions. If you have any further questions, we would be happy to be of assistance. On behalf of the management, I thank you for taking the time to join us on this call. Thank you.
Operator
Thank you. On behalf of Access Capital, that concludes this conference. Thank you for joining us. And you may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.