HPCL asks for more land for new refinery

State-run oil marketer Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) is seeking more land from the Indian government to set up a new refinery that will have a capacity of 9 to 15 million tons per annum (mtpa). The company has already set up an additional refinery at Lote Parshuram in Chiplun in the Ratnagiri district. It is now asking for an additional 4,000 hectares for the plant at Chausal. The government said the land will cost HPCL around 30,000 crore (US$613.2 million). “We have realised we will need more land than what we had been offered by the Maharashtra government at Lote Parshuram. Considering future expansion needs, we are looking at a larger piece of land elsewhere,” a senior company executive said. However, the government said that there should be no displacement of people in acquiring the land. HPCL has a refinery in Mumbai with a capacity of 6.5 mpta, which it may turn into a national lubricant blending facilty once the new refinery is operational. It has another refinery in Visakhapatnam with a capacity of 8.3 mpta. (August 24, 2011)