IOC To Double Refining Capacity With Rs 1.4 Lakh Crore Investment
IOC wants to double its refining capacity to to 150 million tonnes with Rs 1.4 lakh crore investments.
India's biggest oil refiner Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. plans to invest about Rs 1.4 lakh crore to nearly double its oil refining capacity to 150 million tonnes and boost petrochemical production by 2030.
While IOC is expanding refining capacity to meet fuel demand that’s expected to double by 2040, it does not want to remain “a refining company alone and is venturing into petrochemicals and alternative fuels as well,” company's Director (Refineries) B V Rama Gopal told reporters in New Delhi.
IOC is investing Rs 16,628 crore to upgrade refineries to produce Euro-VI emission norm compliant petrol and diesel as against Euro-IV fuel that was being produced now. This investment cycle would be completed by 2020, Rama Gopal said. The company is also investing Rs 15,600 crore to expand petrochemical projects, and another Rs 74,600 crore for raising capacity of its existing refineries.
Indian Oil Corp. currently owns and operates 11 out of the country’s 23 refineries. Its refineries have a total capacity of 80.7 million tonnes per annum.
Rama Gopal said projects worth Rs 36,500 crore are in the pipeline but haven't been approved by the company board yet. These include expansion of its recently-commissioned 15-MTPA Paradip refinery in Odisha to 18 MTPA, and the expansion of its Bongaigaon unit.
India's current refining capacity of 247.6 MTPA exceeds consumption. But with demand growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 3.5-4 percent, it will need to add more capacity to meet the rising fuel needs. The International Energy Agency expects India’s fuel demand to reach 450-492 MTPA by 2040.
IOC Capacity Expansion Plans
- Panipat refinery in Haryana: 25 MTPA from 15 MTPA currently
- Koyali refinery in Gujarat: 18 MTPA from 13.7 MTPA currently
- Barauni refinery in Bihar: Additional 3 MTPA
- Mathura refinery in Uttar Pradesh: Additional 1.2 MTPA
Rama Gopal said IOC is also looking at adding a 9 MTPA capacity to its subsidiary Chennai Petroleum. He added that IOC, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum are together setting up a new 60 MPTA refinery on the west coast in Maharashtra.
