Page 136 - CW E-Magazine (5-9-2023)

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TRANSFORMATIVE INITIATIVE

BPCL targets Rs. 1.5-lakh crore capex in 5 years;

eyes PP project at Kochi

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. necessitating reliance on sourcing from
(BPCL) on August 28 announced that other oil companies,” he added.
in the next fi ve years, it will spend
around Rs. 1.5-lakh crore towards its The merger of Bharat Oman Refi ne-
transformative initiative, Project Aspire. ries Ltd. (BORL) into BPCL during the
As part of this initiative, it will grow its year has provided a signifi cant boost to
oil business and expand its renewable refi ning capabilities. The capacity of
energy portfolio as it aims for a 2040 the Bina Refi nery is being expanded
net-zero goal, its Chairman and Managing from 7.8-mtpa to 11-mtpa, and BPCL is
Director, Mr. G. Krishnakumar said at also building an ethylene cracker at the
its 70th AGM. refi nery, which will raise the refi nery’s
share of petrochemicals in its business
Mr. Krishnakumar said BPCL to 8%.
would invest Rs. 1 trillion between now BPCL’s green energy initiatives in-
and 2040 for projects including green clude providing electric vehicle charg- “Our strategy for infrastructure
hydrogen, carbon capture, utilisation, ing facilities at 7,000 outlets; progress- network expansion will enable our
and storage (CCUS) and on improving ing towards achieving higher ethanol presence in new demand-centres in the
energy effi ciency to cut emissions. The blending; setting up renewable energy emerging markets such as upcoming
company hopes to own 1-GW of re- projects; and producing compressed highways, agricultural pockets, rural,
newable energy capacity by 2025 and bio-gas (CBG) from various sources. remote, and far-fl ung areas. In this re-
10-GW by 2040. It will also invest Rs. 10-bn to set up gard, I am happy to inform you that we
50-MW of captive wind power plants at are setting up Petroleum Oil, Lubricants
BPCL’s ‘Project Aspire’ works its Mumbai and Bina refi neries. and Lube Oil Base Stock installations
around the company’s plans to nurture at Rasayani along with receipt
its core business and grow its future big Bina refi nery projects pipelines, with investments of around
bets. Under ‘nurturing the core,’ it will Mr. Krishnakumar also highlighted Rs. 2,753-crore. This will debottleneck
bolster its refi ning, marketing, and up- the company’s aim to enhance refi ning the evacuation of products from
stream operations. Upstream activities capabilities, with a particular focus on Mumbai refi nery and ensure seamless
will continue to be a focus, with BPCL northern India. “Northern India is pro- supplies, particularly to the Northern
determined to monetise discoveries in jected to face a product defi cit of around markets,” Mr. Kumar noted. BPCL is
Mozambique and Brazil, contributing 10-mtpa by 2030. Likewise, BPCL has also considering adding a polypropylene
significantly to the nation’s energy been in defi cit of its own products in (PP) project to its 310,000-bpd Kochi
landscape. the Northern and Central India markets, refi nery in Southern India.

Finance Minister launches HSBC India’s green

hydrogen partnerships

Finance Minister, Ms. Nirmala Energy Foundation (SSEF), the bank alternative fuel and help build a robust
Sitharaman recently launched HSBC said in a statement. These two partner- green hydrogen economy. “Green hydro-
India’s strategic partnerships to enable ships, with total grant support of gen has a pivotal role to play as we
innovation in green hydrogen, partnering Rs. 15-crore ($2-mn), the bank said, will counter climate change and work towards
with the Indian Institute of Technology, focus on innovation projects that will help enabling a low-carbon and self-reliant
Bombay (IIT-B) and Shakti Sustainable prioritize green hydrogen as a strategic economy,” said Ms. Sitharaman.

136 Chemical Weekly September 5, 2023

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