Numaligarh Refinery Ltd Gears Up for Historic Expansion with Imported Crude

Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) is set to process imported crude oil for the first time following its expansion to 9 million tonnes per annum. The project, part of Oil India's plans, includes building a 6 million ton Crude Distillation Unit and a Poly Propylene Unit. Completion is aimed for December 2026.

Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL), a subsidiary of Oil India, is poised to begin processing imported crude oil for the first time in its history. This initiative follows a substantial expansion of the refinery's capacity from 3 million to 9 million tonnes per annum, which is expected to be commercially completed by year-end.

The Rs 33,901 crore project involves installing a Crude Distillation Unit with a capacity of 6 million tonnes per annum, alongside necessary crude oil terminals and a pipeline to accommodate Arab Light and Arab Heavy crude oil processing. A cross-country pipeline of 1,640 km has been installed to transport imported crude from Paradip Port in Odisha to Numaligarh.

Additionally, the expansion includes a 360,000-tonne Poly Propylene Unit to boost downstream industries in plastics and packaging. This expansion aims not only to meet the domestic fuel demand but also to create surplus for export to neighboring countries like Myanmar and Bangladesh, ensuring timely payments without backlog.

(With inputs from agencies.)