State run Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOC) on Monday inked pacts with Gujarat government for implementing projects totaling around ₹ 24,000 crore in the western state.
“IndianOil’s Gujarat Refinery will be implementing India’s first Hydrogen Dispensing Facility as a clean fuel initiative,” the state-run firm said in a statement.
This comes in the backdrop of India working to leverage its compressed natural gas (CNG) pipeline grid and infrastructure to reduce the transportation cost for the new age emission free fuel—hydrogen.
“IndianOil’s Gujarat Refinery is now poised to grow to 18 MMTPA capacity. New units for the production of Polypropylene, Butyl Acrylate and Lube Oil Base stocks will also be added to the Refinery’s portfolio,” IOC chairman SM Vaidya said in the statement.
Also, plans are afoot to run buses across major Indian cities fueled by hydrogen blended with CNG. 50 buses in Delhi are plying on blended hydrogen in CNG on a pilot basis.
“The other infrastructure projects envisaged are New Flare System at Gujarat Refinery and a Hydrogen dispensing facility for Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEV). IndianOil’s Gujarat Refinery will be implementing India’s first Hydrogen Dispensing Facility as a clean fuel initiative. This facility aims to fuel Hydrogen buses plying between Vadodara and Kevadia /Sabarmati Ashram,” the statement added.
The clean fuel can be a game changer for India, which imports 85% of its oil and 53% of gas demand.
“The Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Vijaybhai Rupani and Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas & Steel, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, today presided over an MOU signing ceremony for “Investment Promotion” between the Government of Gujarat and IndianOil for setting up a Petrochemical and Lube Integration (LuPech) Project and Acrylics / Oxo Alcohol Project along with other infrastructure projects at its Gujarat Refinery at Vadodara,” the statement said.
“The LuPech project will produce import substitutes like Lube Oil Base Stock (LOBS) and Polypropylene. The Acrylics/Oxo Alcohol Project at Dumad and Gujarat Refinery will manufacture value-added Butyl Acrylate, a key ingredient for paints, coatings, adhesives, textile chemicals, plasticizer industry, and other similar products,” the statement added.
IOC announced a net profit of ₹8,781.30 crore for the March quarter, compared with a net loss of ₹5,185.32 crore a year earlier. India’s largest fuel retailer posted a huge jump in annual net profit to ₹21,836 crore for the financial year ended 31 March, from ₹1,313 crore in 2019-20 due to higher inventory gains and improved petrochemical margins. Annual revenue, however, declined 9.08% to ₹5,14,890 crore during 2020-21 from ₹5,66,354 crore in the previous year.
“MoU was also signed for Infrastructure facilities at Dumad for Koyali-Ahmednagar-Solapur Pipeline (KAhSPL) and Tank Truck Loading facility for Linear Alkyl Benzene (LAB)—a feed-stock for detergent industries,” the statement said.
Source : Live Mint
