Moneycontrol | Rajasthan’s Barmer refinery to process 9 MMTPA of crude: Oil Minister

Feb 21,2023

Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said on February 21 that the HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Limited (HRRL) will process 9 MMTPA (million metric tonnes per annum) of crude and produce more than 2.4 million tonnes of petrochemicals. HRRL—a joint venture between Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and the Rajasthan government—would steer India to its vision of achieving 450 MMTPA refining capacity by 2030, said the Oil Minister.

The Indian government aims to boost its refining capacity to 450 MMTPA by 2030 to meet the growing domestic fuel demand. Addressing a press conference, Puri said that more than 60 percent of the project has been completed despite the setback faced during two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The project, which was initially approved in 2013, was reconfigured by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, and work commenced in 2018. Puri said the project would make India self-reliant in terms of import substitution of petrochemicals. It is also expected that the import bill would reduce by Rs 26,000 crore after the commissioning of the project, which currently is at Rs 95,000 crore, he added. Since the Russia-Ukraine war, India is focusing on reducing imports for its energy needs by giving a boost to domestic production to achieve energy security. The Oil Minister said the total annual contribution of the petroleum sector to the state exchequer shall be about Rs 27,500 crore, out of which, the contribution from the refinery complex shall be Rs 5,150 crore.

He added that exports of products of about Rs 12,250 crore would earn valuable foreign exchange. Associated benefits Puri referred to the HRRL refinery in Barmer as the “Jewel of the Desert” which would bring "jobs, opportunities, and joy" to the people of Rajasthan. The minister said the project has engaged about 35,000 workers in and around the complex and about 1,00,000 workers are engaged indirectly. A co-ed school till class 12th catering to about 600 students would also be opened, informed Puri. “The school land has been acquired and the architectural layout has been finalized and the 16 construction has commenced. It is expected to be completed by Dec 2023.

This shall be the first school in the vicinity,” he said. In addition to the school, a 50-bed hospital is also being developed which is expected to be completed by December 2023. Puri also highlighted other benefits due to the establishment of the refinery such as, an increase in connectivity in the region, environmental benefits, and a boost to industrial development