New Delhi: Assam-based Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) has set the ball rolling on the development of a crude oil import terminal in Paradip Port, Odisha on Wednesday. NRL, Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) and Paradip Port Trust (PPT) have entered into a tripartite MoU to reuse the dredged materials. The dredged material will be used for land reclamation of NRL storage terminal at Paradip for the first time, said NRL in an official statement.
The tripartite MoU makes way for reclamation of the 200 acres of land allotted to NRL for setting up its Crude Oil import terminal (COIT) at Paradip Port. Land filling activity will soon be started by Dredging Corporation of India by way of dredging and reclaim, said NRL.
According to NRL, the terminal is being set up as part of NRL's integrated refinery expansion project that is being implemented at an estimated cost of more than Rs 22,000 crore. The mega project envisages amongst others, import of crude oil at Paradip port and laying of cross-country pipeline from Paradip to Numaligarh to transport the same. Project activities have gathered pace after receipt of Environmental Clearance in July this year.
NRL has said that DCI shall start the dredging activity from mid-November and is expected to complete the reclamation work within a period of seven months.
NRL is a subsidiary company of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), which is slated to be privatised. The government has decided to carve NRL out of BPCL and sell BPCL's stake in the refiner to Oil India Ltd (OIL) and Engineers India Limited (EIL). The transfer of shares is expected to take place before BPCL privatisation.
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