Reliance expects approval for export refinery plan

30 March 2007 09:57  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Reliance Industries, the Indian petrochemicals major, expects to secure government approval by end-April to turn its existing 33m tonne/year Jamnagar refinery complex in Gujarat into an export-oriented unit (EOU), a company source said on Friday.

 

The status would entitle the company to duty-free imports of crude oil. The import duty on crude in India is 5%.

 

Reliance has applied to India's Commerce Ministry for the change in status of the refinery, which has been in operation since July 1999.

 

Reliance produces 1.04m tonnes/year of polypropylene (PP) at the Jamnagar complex, using propylene feedstock from the refinery. The refinery also has a 250,000 tonne/year benzene unit.

 

The company is looking at starting up a new 27m tonne/year refinery at Jamnagar in December 2008.

The company is also planning to build a 1m tonne/year cracker, polyethylene (PE) and monoethylene glycol (MEG) plants downstream of the refinery by 2010-2011.

A 900,000 tonne/year PP plant is also due to start up downstream of the refinery by end-2008.

By: Prema Viswanathan
+65 6780 4359

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