India’s emergence as a global refining hub has recently received a big boost with the three downstream PSU oil majors, Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, joining hands to build one of the world’s largest integrated Refinery-cum-Petrochemicals complexes in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra.
The joint venture agreement for the West Coast Refinery Project has been signed in the presence of Mr. Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Petroleum & Natural Gas; and Mr. KD Tripathi, Secretary, Petroleum; by Mr. Sanjiv Singh, Chairman, IndianOil; Mr. D Rajkumar, CMD, Bharat Petroleum; and Mr. MK Surana, Chairman, Hindustan Petroleum.
The 60 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) west coast refinery-cum-petrochemicals complex will be a state-of-the-art unit built at an estimated cost of USD 40B, and is expected to be commissioned by the year 2022. It will be a green refinery comprising 50 units designed to operate at the highest level of efficiency, and will be self-sufficient in power and utilities requirements, besides creating a benchmark in environment management.
Designed to produce Euro-VI and above grade transportation fuels, the refinery will have in-built flexibility for processing a wide spectrum of light and heavy crude oil grades, utilising various blending techniques. The project will be embedded with social responsibility initiatives and a skill development centre, and a smart township with best-in-class services is also being planned.
