Paradip refinery to be complete by 2010-11

The Rs 35,000 crore refinery-cum-petrochemicals project of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) at Paradip, Orissa will be completed by 2010-11, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said.

The Paradip project was high on IOC's priority, and over Rs 1,000 crore would be spent immediately on site development work, Deora told Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in New Delhi yesterday.

Patnaik, who had called on Deora, thanked him for scaling up the project from 9 MMTPA petroleum refinery to a 15 MMTPA refinery-cum-petrochemicals complex, and suggested that IOC should act as the anchor tenant for promoting a petrochemicals and petroleum refinery investment region at Paradip.

Both Deora and Patnaik agreed to put in place a high level joint task force for the purpose.