Visakhapatnam: Consulting firm Engineers India Ltd (EIL), has been tasked with preparing the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the proposed petrochemical complex in Vizag, developed jointly by HPCL and GAIL.
The DPR work is underway. The units under the complex will be spread out in the region spanning Vizag to Machilipatnam. Projected investment is between Rs 25,000 crore to 30,000 crore.
Confirming to the DPR work, Vizag MP K. Haribabu said that EIL will study aspects and factors, like availability and demand for products based on naphtha, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and natural gas.
Mr Haribabu had met Union petroleum minister Dharmenda Pradhan, in Delhi, on Thursday. “EIL will be studying various aspects and is expected to submit the DPR shortly. Basing on EIL’s report, the petroleum ministry will take the call. Petroleum minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, is very keen on the AP’s petrochemical complex and very positive on the proposal. The new facility will help AP’s economy also. HPCL’s Vizag refinery is also in expansion mode. Various units of the petrochemical complex will be at Vizag, Kakinada and Machilipatnam,” he told this correspondent.
The Vizag MP also met EIL, CMD, Sanjay Gupta in the presence of Dharmedra Padhan and discussed the progress on the DPR. It is worth mentioning here that, due to poor market conditions, the Centre had scrapped the Petroleum Chemical Petrochemical Investment Region (PCPIR) planned between Vizag and Kakinada.
In lieu, it recently mooted the petrochemical complex. Government had aimed to attract Rs 3.43 lakh crore investments with employment potential of 12 lakhs in the PCPIR.
The petroleum minister had also hinted at a meeting held in Vizag last year that the Centre is working on a different economic model better than PCPIR for the market growth. It is keen to set up the petro chemical complex instead of the green field oil refinery.
