Essar Oil eyes Kenyan refinery

The Essar group is understood to have initiated discussions for acquiring 50 per cent stake in a Kenyan refinery from international oil players as part of its move for a global footprint.

The refinery in Mombasa, in which the government of Kenya owns a 50 per cent stake, has an annual production capacity of about 4 million tonnes.

According to sources close to the development, Essar is looking to buy out the remaining 50 per cent stake held by three global energy giants "" Chevron, Royal Dutch and British Petroleum "" in Kenyan Refinery and Petroleum.

Essar is looking at this potential deal, the announcement for which is expected shortly, in pursuance with its worldwide expansion plans and it would further expand its presence in the African sub-continent.

The group already has three exploration and production blocks in Madagascar and one additional block in Nigeria.

Company officials from Mumbai said, "We continue to look for growth opportunity in sectors, where ever we are present. As a corporate policy we will not like to talk about any such proposal."

Essar has been scouting for refinery assets outside India for quite some time and has recently expressed its intention to expand its refining capacity to 10 lakh barrels per day, including 3 lakh barrels per day outside the country.