June 25, 2018
The agreement for the US$45 billion refinery project was signed between Saudi Aramco’s chief executive, Amin H Nasser, and ADNOC chief executive, Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber in New Delhi
The project will be implemented by Ratnagiri Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd (RRPCL), which will be owned equally by a consortium of India state-run oil and gas companies and foreign investors
The mega refinery will be capable of processing 1.2 million barrels of crude oil per day and producing about 18 million tonnes per annum of petrochemical products
The project is expected to contribute to a national GDP improvement of around 2 per cent; Pre-project activities have been initiated and a demand supply market study has been completed
Saudi Arabian Oil Co (Saudi Aramco) and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) signed a preliminary agreement on June 25th to jointly develop and build an integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex at Ratnagiri in Maharashtra. The project will be implemented by Ratnagiri Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd (RRPCL), which will be owned equally by a consortium of India state-run oil and gas companies and the foreign investors. The Indian consortium holding 50 per cent stake in the project include Indian Oil Corp Ltd, Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd. The budget for what will become the world’s largest integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex has been estimated at around US$45 billion. The agreement was signed between Saudi Aramco’s chief executive, Amin H Nasser, and ADNOC chief executive, Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber in New Delhi.
The signing happened during the state visit of Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, to India. Dharmendra Pradhan, India’s minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, was present on the occasion. The strategic partnership brings together crude supply, resources, technologies, experience and expertise of multiple oil companies with an established commercial presence around the world. On April 11, 2018, Saudi Aramco had joined the Ratnagiri project by signing an agreement with the Indian consortium. Saudi Aramco also sought to include another strategic player to participate in the project as an overseas investor. Following this, ADNOC had expressed interest in acquiring a stake in the project which is expected to bring in the single largest overseas investment in the Indian refining sector.
The mega refinery will be capable of processing 1.2 million barrels of crude oil per day (60 million tonnes per year). It will produce a range of refined petroleum products, including petrol and diesel meeting the latest BS-VI fuel efficiency norms. The refinery will provide feedstock for the integrated petrochemicals complex, which will have the capacity of producing about 18 million tonnes per annum of petrochemical products. The project is designed to meet India’s fast-growing fuels and petrochemicals demand – currently the world’s third largest. The project is expected to contribute to a national gross domestic product (GDP) improvement of around 2 per cent. Certain pre-project activities have also been initiated and a demand supply market study for petrochemicals has also been completed. The refinery will include facilities such as a logistics, storage terminals and power infrastructure.