BPCL gets government approval for Kochi Refinery expansion

India’s Ministry of Environment and Forest has granted environmental clearance to Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd.’s (BPCL) Integrated Expansion Project (IREP), which would focus on the production of Euro 4- and Euro 5-compliant transport fuels.
The refining capacity of the Kochi Refinery in Kerala, where these fuels will be produced, will be increased from the present 9.5 million metric tons (mt) a year to 15.5 million mt a year, at a cost of Rs14,225 crore (US$2.5 billion). The IREP project is scheduled for completion by December 2015. (November 24, 2012)