BPCL to fund Bina refinery expansion

Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) will proceed with funding a multibillion-dollar expansion of the Bina refinery after its partner, the Oman Oil Company, stalled on investing in the project.

The state-run Indian company will spend Rs35 billion ($557 million) by 2018, and a further Rs180 billion-200 billion ($2.86 billion-$3.18 billion) over the following five to six years to expand the refinery’s production capacity.

This capacity stands at 6 million tonnes per year (tpy). The expansion, announced in January 2015, will raise this figure to 7.8 million tpy by 2018, and 15 million tpy in the second phase.

Located in Madhya Pradesh, the Bina refinery was built as a joint venture between BPCL and the Oman Oil Company, with each holding a 50-percent stake.

BPCL runs four refineries in India, including Bina, Kochi, Mumbai and Numaligarh. An expansion and upgrade of the Kochi refinery (pictured) is scheduled for completion in 2016.