IOCL to Invest Rs. 840 Cr to Enhance POL Storage Capacity In North-East by 2030
Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL or IndianOil) will invest Rs. 840 crore by 2030 to enhance its Petroleum, Oil and Lubricants (POL) storage capacity in North-East India.
IOCL’s target is to enhance its POL storage capacity to support 5,530 TMTPA (Thousand Metric Tonnes Per Annum) by 2030, which will be a 75% increase from its current POL storage capacity in the North East.
IOCL’s Plan to Enhance its POL Storage Capacity in North East India
At present, IOCL has 13 POL depots across the North-East region, with a combined storage capacity to support 3,160 TMTPA, out of which about 2,428 TMTPA is being utilised.
In order to achieve its target, IOCL is investing in two greenfield projects, and upgrading its existing Betkuchi POL depot at Guwahati.
IOCL’s Greenfield Projects for POL Storage Capacity Enhancement
IndianOil has earmarked a sum of Rs. 540 crore out of the total Rs. 840 crore for setting up two greenfield projects.
The first greenfield project is to come up at Sekerkote in Tripura, which will be completed by 2024. Currently, IOCL is in the process of acquiring land clearances for setting up the facility, and the construction is set to commence soon.
The second greenfield project is the POL depot at Moinarbond, near Silchar, Assam. IOCL has completed the construction of this plant and now is in process of aligning railway tracks to the depot for bulk movement. So far, merely Rs. 4-5 crore have been invested in this project. This facility is set to be commissioned in the coming few months.
Indian Oil Corporation Executive Director (IndianOil-Assam Oil Division), Mr G Ramesh said on 3rd April, that more than 800 people will be hired at these greenfield POL depots at Moinarband and Sekerkote through permanent and contract modes.
Up-Gradation of IOCL’s Existing Betkuchi POL Depot at Guwahati
Currently, the storage intake of IOCL’s Betkuchi POL depot is 25,000 KL. This storage intake will be increased to 54,000 KL through an investment of Rs. 298 crore. IOCL shall also use this amount to install new fire water tanks and other facilities at the depot.
IOCL has already acquired 10.67 acres of land to expand its Betkuchi depot.
Mr Ramesh further said, “After all our expansion projects are completed, our installed storage capacity will reach 5,530 TMTPA against a projected demand of 4,950 TMTPA by 2030”.
About IOCL: Indian Oil Corporation Limited is an Indian Government-owned oil and gas producer and explorer. Headquartered in New Delhi, IOCL is a ‘Maharatna’ Public Sector Undertaking (PSU), under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG). IndianOil operates 11 refineries in India and has a refining capacity of 80.55 MMTPA (Million Metric Tonnes Per Annum).
