IOCL delays commissioning of Paradip plant, HPCL revives proposal to set up plant in AP PCPIR

13-Aug-14

The proposed grassroot refinery by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd at Paradip Petroleum Chemicals and Petrochemical Investment Region (PCPIR) in Odisha will be further delayed and is now likely to be commissioned in 2015. As reported by Business Standard, as per officials, the project was to be commissioned by end of 2014 but is getting delayed due to logistics problem. For the Paradip refinery, the proposed project would cost around Rs 30,000 crore in the first phase. A petrochemical complex will be set up at a later date depending on the market conditions, said official sources. IOCL has already invested Rs 22,000 crore. The total investment of the project is around Rs 2,80,000 crore is expected out of which committed investment is of the tune of Rs 29,777 crore. The state government of Orissa has already invested Rs 1,800 crore and private participation has been around Rs 11,000 crore. The government of India has already approved viability gap funding of Rs 716 crore. Paradip PCPIR is a brown field project where a special purpose vehicle (SPV), Paradip Investment Region Development Ltd. has been formed to implement the project. Meanwhile, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) has revived its plan to set up Rs 10,000 crore for upgradation of Vishakh refinery from 7.5 to 15 MMTPA. Now the new Andhra Pradesh government has assured new land allotment either at Nakapalli or In the Kakinada Special Economic Zone ( SEZ). HPCL is also in talks with new foreign investors for this project specifically from the West Asia and Saudi Arab region. It has re-started the feasibility study with the help of another partner Gas Authority of India Ltd ( GAIL) and Engineers India ( EIL). The project envisaged expansion of the refinery from its present 8.4 MMTPA capacity to 15 MMTPA. Besides it proposes to set up new 15 MMTPA refineries cum petrochemical Complex at a cost of Rs 32,000 crore. The new Andhra Pradesh government has decided to allot new land to the PCPIR as the old area has run into environmental problems.