India's top oil company Indian Oil corporation (IOC) will infuse Rs 61,077 crore in building a petrochemical complex at Paradip in Odisha, its largest ever investment at a single location, as it doubles down on its transition plan.
In a statement, IOC said its board has given "Stage-1 approval for setting up Paradip petrochemical complex at Paradip, Odisha at an estimated cost of Rs 61,077 crore." "This mega project will be the largest-ever investment of Indian Oil at a single location,"
However, it said but did not give timelines for completion of the project. This is a part of its transition plan including boosting petrochemical intensity to help protect against volatility. Petrochemical intensity refers to the percentage of crude oil that is converted directly into chemicals that are used to make plastic and other material. Crude oil, pumped out of the ground and from below the seabed, is processed in refineries to make petrol, diesel and other fuel. It can be processed to make petrochemicals, bypassing the fuels. IOC's petrochemical intensity - the percentage of crude oil converted into chemicals- is low at 5-6% currently. The company intends to take it up to 10-12%.
The company said, the petrochemical complex at Paradip will include a large-scale cracker unit as well as downstream processing units for producing a variety of petrochemical products, including polypropylene (PP), high density polyethylene (HDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), and poly vinyl chloride (PVC), which are the building blocks of various grades of plastics. Also, it will make it easier to produce specialty petrochemicals and compounds like phenol and isopropanol.
