Wedoany.com Report on Feb 15th, Assam-based Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) has announced that its refinery expansion project, the Paradip-Numaligarh Crude Oil Pipeline, and the Paradip Crude Oil Import Terminal are expected to be completed by December 2026. This series of initiatives aims to increase NRL's annual capacity from 3 million tonnes to 9 million tonnes, significantly enhancing its energy production capabilities.
NRL is transporting crude oil from Paradip Port to the Numaligarh refinery via a 1,635-kilometer crude oil pipeline to support the capacity expansion. Concurrently, the company has commissioned a second-generation biorefinery, which is expected to have a negative carbon impact on the environment. In September last year, the Indian Prime Minister inaugurated the Assam Bioethanol Plant and laid the foundation stone for a polypropylene plant at NRL in Golaghat, further advancing the petrochemical industry.
At Numaligarh, NRL will establish a 360 KTA polypropylene plant with a project cost exceeding ₹70,000 crore. This plant, combined with the expanded refinery, is expected to increase NRL's petrochemical intensity index by 4.0. During interactions with the media, officials indicated that the expansion project might experience cost overruns. The approved budget is ₹28,026 crore, but the cost is projected to potentially rise to ₹33,900 crore. Costs incurred so far amount to ₹27,061 crore.
During his visit to Assam on September 14 last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated, "India is currently the world's fastest-growing major economy." He noted that as the country develops, the demand for electricity, gas, and fuel increases, but India has long relied on imported crude oil and natural gas, paying trillions of rupees annually. Modi emphasized the need to change this situation, confirming that India is striving for energy self-sufficiency, including exploring new oil and gas reserves domestically and enhancing green energy capabilities.
Modi also mentioned that expert assessments indicate significant potential oil and gas reserves in India's maritime zones and that the National Deep Water Exploration Mission has been launched to ensure these resources are utilized for national development. NRL's capacity expansion and petrochemical projects are part of India's energy strategy to reduce external dependence and promote indigenous industrial growth.
