Bhatinda refinery capacity can be doubled: Mittal

Bhatinda: Mr L.N. Mittal, Chairman and CEO, ArcelorMittal, said that the capacity of Bhatinda refinery could be raised to 18 million tonne per annum (mtpa) in future.

The 9 mtpa Guru Gobind Singh Refinery at Phulkori, Bhatinda, has been built by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation-Mittal Energy joint venture, HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd.

The $4-billion refinery was dedicated to the nation on Saturday by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh.

This established Mr L.N. Mittal as one of the players in the country’s refining segment. With the full commissioning of the refinery, the country’s refining capacity has gone up to 213 mtpa. Bhatinda is the 24th refinery in the country.

Speaking at the occasion, Mr Mittal said, this refinery will not only increase energy security but also establish Punjab as a petrochem hub.

He said a decision on initial public offering will be taken by the joint venture board. "It will eventually happen."

The Government had approved the joint venture in July 2007, and work on construction of the refinery started in early 2008. It started refining crude oil in August 2011 and recently achieved commissioning of the entire project.

The refinery’s first liquid sales happened in December 2011 with dispatch of kerosene and the first solid sales in February 2012 with sale of petroleum coke. The company has 80 per cent offtake agreement with HPCL.

Both the joint venture partners hold 49 per cent each in the company. The rest is held by Indian financial institutions.

HMEL has the capability to cater to Punjab's entire fuel needs and meet the demands of North India. Actual sales will, however, evolve through the sponsor and marketer HPCL. HMEL can also explore the possibility of exports to Pakistan due to its strategic location.

Engineers India Ltd was the project management consultant. It was financed by a consortium of Indian banks led by State Bank of India.