IOCL signs licence agreement with Serbian company for its ‘INDMAX’ technology

New Delhi: (Oil and Gas News) Indian Oil Corporation's (IOCL) state-of-the-art INDMAX refining technology, with Lummus Technology Inc, USA, as the global licencing partner, has been selected through a global tender by M/s. Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) of Serbia for the production of higher-value products. The first-ever overseas agreement to licence IOCL's INDMAX refinery process technology for high propylene production was signed between NIS and Lummus Technology Inc, USA, in the presence of IOCL's Chairman Sanjiv Singh and Director (R&D) Dr SSV Ramakumar at Belgrade city in Serbia December 17. This breakthrough has opened up new vistas for expanding the global footprint of the 'Make in India" product. Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) is one of the largest vertically integrated oil & gas companies in Southeast Europe, with the Russian oil & gas conglomerate, Gazprom Neft (GPN), as its major shareholder.

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The selection of INDMAX technology was preceded by a rigorous due-diligence process involving demonstration of the credentials of the novel FCC (fluidised catalytic cracking) technology that is successfully operating at the 4.17 million tonnes per annum INDMAX unit at IOCL's Paradip Refinery since December 2015. IOCL's Research & Development Centre developed INDMAX in-house to enhance refinery profit margins by achieving high yields of LPG, light olefins and high-octane gasoline from residual petroleum hydrocarbon streams and fractions.

The efficacy of the technology was first demonstrated by setting up a 100,000 tonnes per annum unit at IOCL's Guwahati Refinery in the year 2003. This was followed by the mega INDMAX unit at Paradip Refinery in 2015, which placed IOCL in the league of world-class refinery process licensors. A third INDMAX unit of 0.74 million tonnes per annum is under commissioning at IndianOil's Bongaigaon Refinery.

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