IOC mulls petrochem export to Pakistan

18-Apr-05

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is considering the option of exporting petrochemicals from its Panipat refinery to Pakistan. Scheduled to commence in August 2005, the Rs 5,100 crore complex will house an aromatics and purified terephthalic acid (PTA) complex at Panipat in Haryana. The aromatics production will comprise 357,000 tpa paraxylene (PX), 21,000 tpa of benzene and 553,000 tpa of PTA. IOC, along with the Railways plans to work out the feasibility of transporting diesel to Pakistan from Panipat or Mathura refineries. Talks are underway with Pakistan for the removal of petroleum and petrochemical products from the negative list of exports. Railway undertaking Container Corporation of India (Concor) is working out the feasibility of transporting petrochemicals in containers. If successful, the talks will mark Concor's entry into Pakistan. Pakistan identified a requirement of 1.2 mt diesel in Lahore, 1 mt in Karachi and 0.4 mt in Jhelum. Pakistan currently imports its requirement of diesel from West Asia- 4.5 mt diesel from a total requirement of 7.2 mt. IOC had shortlisted three refineries for supplying diesel to Karachi- the Reliance refinery in Jamnagar, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation's (ONGC) refinery in Mangalore and its own refinery at Koyali in Gujarat. Pakistan State Oil Corporation had identified Karachi, Jhelum and Lahore for receiving 2.6 million tons of diesel from IOC. It would be feasible to transport diesel to Karachi by sea from Gujarat.