CPCL to step up efficiency with upgrade project

India’s Chennai Petroleum Corp. Ltd. hopes to strengthen its bottom line with the implementation of an INR3,110-crore (USD4.96 billion) resid upgrade project at the Manali refinery to improve profitability and increase the percentage of high sulfur crude processing. The company is also contemplating a project to increase capacity at the Manali refinery by 6 million metric tons per year (mtpy) to address a projected supply-demand gap.
The oil refinery, a part of the Indian Oil Corp. (IOC), will see its yield of products from crude oil go up to 75% from 68%. The increase in efficiency will see it on par with more modern refineries and is key to improving its performance, according to R. S. Butola, chairman, IOC and CPCL. It is scheduled to be completed by December 2015.
A slowdown in demand, foreign exchange fluctuation and an unplanned shutdown had hit the performance of the refinery.
Addressing shareholders at the CPCL annual general meeting, he said the global slowdown has hit the refinery sector globally. IOC’s profits had also dropped drastically during the year.
(August 21, 22, 2013)