BPCL CMD Mr Sanjay Khanna today called upon the Chief Minister Mr N Chandrababu Naidu and updated him on the mega greenfield refinery cum petrochemical project being undertaken in the state.
The project is being built at an estimated cost of around Rs 1.45 lakh crore and is slated to be established between Prakasam and Nellore districts.
As per details given the greenfield refinery will have a capacity of 9 million tonnes per annum wherein the CM has also proposed BPCL to set up a downstream petrochemical park too in the vicinity of the refinery.
The BPCL CMD informed the Chief Minister that the project is expected to receive final environmental clearance by the end of September.
The final investment cost is likely to be firmed up in October after the study report being prepared by Engineers India Limited (EIL) is received. Construction works on the refinery will commence thereafter, he said.
Products at the Refinery
Mr Khanna informed that the refinery would produce Euro-6 standard fuels, including Motor Spirit, High-Speed Diesel and Aviation Turbine Fuel, with a combined production of around 5.4 million tonnes.
Other petrochemical products are expected to account for around 3.2 million tonnes.
The project will also generate downstream products and by-products such as HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Speed of Doing Business
Chief Minister Naidu is said to have directed Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) to expedite the commencement of works on its greenfield refinery-cum-petrochemical project near Ramayapatnam Port.
He noted that 75% of the 6,000 acres of land required for the refinery has already been handed over and assured that the remaining land would be handed over by the second week of October.
Mr Naidu directed officials and BPCL representatives to accelerate all project-related processes and ensure that construction works commence at the earliest.
The Chief Minister suggested that BPCL and APIIC jointly prepare a plan for establishing a downstream petrochemical park over approximately 1,500 acres near the refinery.
Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu observed that demand for petrochemicals is changing rapidly with increasing urbanisation and the expansion of the manufacturing sector in India.
With the country’s petrochemical intensity index, currently around 5 per cent, expected to rise to 15–20 per cent over the next decade, he said the refinery should be designed keeping future requirements in mind.
The Chief Minister suggested that modern refineries should focus not merely on converting crude oil into fuels, but also on increasing the production of chemical feedstocks such as ethylene and propylene.
BPCL CMD said India’s chemical and petrochemical sector is expected to reach $1 trillion by 2040 and that BPCL would work towards meeting the country’s future requirements.
