Union
Petroleum Minister, Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, has ruled out the possibility of
relocating Hindustan Petroleum Corporation's upcoming Bhatinda refinery from
Punjab to Rajasthan. The minister indicated that the Punjab government has
agreed to fiscal concessions sought and that Rs.300 crore had been spent on the
project.
HPCL,
it may be recalled had proposed to relocate the refinery to Rajasthan in view of
better fiscal concessions proposed by that state government.
Regarding
a refinery in Rajasthan, the minister stated that the state government or any
private sector company could approach the Central government with a suitable
proposal. It may be mentioned that Cairn Energy's oil discovery in Rajasthan had
engendered optimism for a refinery in Rajasthan. However, the oil production
level, by current thinking, would only be around 3 million tpa, insufficient to
fully justify a refinery project.
Related
News:
HPCL
to relocate Punjab refinery? (29-Oct-04)