IOC plans Rs 7,650 cr petchem complex at Paradip

Company will this month consider setting up a 700,000 tonnes per annum polypropylene plant at an estimated cost of Rs 3,150 crore

State-owned Indian Oil Corp plans to invest Rs 7,650 crore in setting up a petrochemical complex at its almost complete Paradip refinery in Odisha in the next 3-4 years, a company executive said.

IOC wants to use propylene from cracked LPG and ethylene from refinery offgas to produce plastic that is used in manufacturing furniture, disposable cups and trays, printed packaging material, plain and transparent films, currency notes, food packets and pressure-sensitive tapes.

"The Board (of IOC) will this month consider setting up a 700,000 tonnes per annum polypropylene (PP) plant at an estimated cost of Rs 3,150 crore. The plant is to be built by 2017-18," the official said.

The 15 million tonnes Paradip refinery, being built at a cost of Rs 29,777 crore, is likely to be mechanically completed in next quarter, following which stage was commissioning of various units will begin.

IOC feels the consumption of polypropylene (around 10% of domestic consumption) is the lowest in the eastern region. Availability of feedstock will provide impetus to PP- based industry in Odisha and neighbouring states.

Also being considered is a Rs 4,500 crore ethyelene derivatives complex to manufacture 400,000 tonnes per annum of mono-ethyelene glycols (MEG) or 600,000 tonnes of poly vinyl chloride (PVC), he said.

"Feasibility study of ethylene derivative complex (including ethylene recovery unit) is in progress and expected to be completed shortly," he said adding subject to techno- commercial viability, technology tie-up and detailed feasibility study will be undertaken.

Mono ethylene glycol is the main ingredients for polyesters chips fibers, PET bottle grade chips, polyester industrial yarn, coolants, paint formulations, wire enamels

Consumption of ethyelene glycols is the lowest in the eastern region, he said.

Besides polypropyelene and ethylene derivatives, Paradip refinery will also produce 200,000 tonnes per annum of sulphur and 1.25 million tonnes of petcoke which can used for manufacturing downstream products.

The official said Paradip refinery has been built to process at least 40% of toughest, heaviest and the dirtiest crudes like Maya of Mexico which are cheaper than the cleaner and easier varieties available from the Middle-East.

The refinery will have a Nelson Complexity Index of 13, the highest in the world.

The refinery will produce 5.75 million tonnes of diesel, 3.4 million tonnes of petrol, 1.2 million tonnes of kerosene/ ATF, 870,000 tonnes of LPG, 1.25 million tonnes of pet coke and 200,000 tonnes of sulphur, all of which will be for sale in domestic market.