Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) is planning to go for a module-wise expansion in the capacity of its Bina refinery, Madhya Pradesh, going forward on account of cash constraints and less-than-expected returns from the refinery.

As per its new plan, the company will increase the first module of two million tpa mainly through de-bottlenecking, which will require lesser investment and can effect a faster turnaround for the company. Later, smaller chunks of investments will be put in, as and when the returns start pouring in. The target will be to reach close to 12 million tpa in the next five years.

Phase-I of the project, with six million tpa capacity, was developed under a joint venture with Oman Oil Company, through the SPV, Bharat Oman Refineries (BORL). It started production in January 2011. The refinery was able to reach its full capacity after a year of production.

The company has presently earmarked a major part of capex for the expansion of its Kochi refinery. It intends to expand the capacity of the refinery from 9.5 million tpa to 15 million tpa by 2016, with an investment of Rs 15,000 crore.