IOC to invest Rs 1.75 trillion in 7 years; targets 100-mt tonnes refining output

IOC CMD B Ashok

STATE-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) will more than treble its capex to Rs 1.75 trillion over the next seven years against what it spent in the past five years. The Maharatna PSU aims to expand refining output by 54 percent to around 100 mt tonnes, investing Rs 50,000 crore in brownfield expansion alone.
For the current Plan period (12th Plan ending 2017), the IOC has set aside Rs 56,200 crore in capex, most of which went into the 15 million tonnes (mt) Rs 34,500-crore greenfield refinery in Paradeep.
Paradeep refinery will go...
onstream from late next month or early November.
BPCL, country’s second largest oil marketer, had last week said it would invest Rs 1 trillion over the next 5 years to nearly double its refining capacity to 50 mt from 30 mt.
“We have a capex plan of Rs 1.75 trillion over the next seven years up from Rs 56,200 crore earmarked for the 12th Plan. Out of this, Rs 50,000 crore will be invested for brownfield expansion, and this does not include the proposed greenfield refinery on the West Coast,” chairman B Ashok said at the post-AGM press meet.
The country’s largest refiner IOC got a shareholder approval to give Rs 6.50 per share as dividend.
Ashok said investment will increase its refining output to close to 100 million tonne per annum from the present 65 million tonnes, excluding the about-to-be commissioned 15-mt Paradeep Refinery in Odisha.
The nation’s largest company by sales said its Rs 1.75 trillion capex is excluding the proposed mega greenfield refinery it is planning on the West Coast, the company does not have refinery on the West Coast. Outlining details of the capex programme, Ashok said the PSU will be investing Rs 35,000 crore into marketing, Rs 15,000 crore for pipelines, Rs 35,000 crore for exploration & production, Rs 30,000 crore into petrochemical projects, and Rs 7,000 crore into gas.
The exploration investment includes the 10-percent stake in the British Columbia gas block in Western Canada. The company has to pay $4 billion for this, he said, adding it has already pumped in $1.2 billion into the JV.
IOCL is the highest ranked Indian company in the latest Fortune ‘Global 500’ listings, ranked at the 96th position. IOCL's vision is driven by a group of dynamic leaders who have made it a name to reckon with.