Indian Oil pumps up investments in Odisha: MEG/PTA/PX units; plastics/textile parks

In a move aimed at drawing investments into the state of Odisha, Indian Oil Corporation has poured in further investments. Speaking recently, Chairman of Indian Oil, Sanjiv Singh, said, "Indian Oil is planning to set up an integrated PX/PTA plant and a glycols plant at the Paradip refinery at a combined investment of Rs13,000 crore. The PX/PTA and glycols plants will provide the raw material to catalyse the development of a world-class integrated Textiles Park being planned by the government of Odisha at Bhadrak.”

The firm has also invested Rs.35,000 crore in a 15-million metric tonnes/year refinery at the Paradip refinery complex. A new polypropylene unit of 700 kilotonnes/year capacity, estimated to cost Rs.3,150 crore, will also be commissioned by the end of this year.

Meanwhile, Indian Oil has entered into a joint venture with IDCO to develop the Paradip Plastics Park, at an investment of Rs106 crore, to provide a manufacturing base for the downstream plastics industry in Odisha with support facilities ranging from warehouse for raw material and finished products and product testing facilities. The park is spread over 120 acres, out of which 70 acres will be available for industrial plots. The downstream units coming up in the park will have access to facilities, including CIPET's Polymer Processing and Evaluation Centre (PPEC), to support innovation and diversified growth.

It will utilise PP from the Paradip Refinery complex. The units likely to come up include raffia for cement bags, FIBC, etc.; injection moulding units for furniture items, houseware, caps, etc., BOPP and TQPP for flexible packaging; and non-woven for hygiene applications. The net employment generation from the park will be more than 7,000.

And with India's current domestic textiles and apparel market estimated at US$125 billion, and expected to grow at 11% CAGR to reach US$220 billion by the year 2025, Indian Oil will set up a textiles park in the Bhadrak district of Odisha. The integrated textiles park, to be developed over 234 acres, will house units from across the entire value chain – from polyester fibre to apparels. Indian Oil says it will make available the basic raw material, i.e., PTA & MEG, within the state itself, for the downstream industries. There is a huge potential for investment in this segment since the value chain from fibre/yarn to finished clothes/apparel involves a plethora of activities like weaving/knitting/dying/cutting/sewing/garmenting, etc. Hence, apart from the commercial aspects, this is expected to create thousands of jobs across categories for the benefit of the local population, says Indian Oil.

Currently, India's per capita consumption for plastics is at about 10 kg per person, which is low in comparison to the global average of about 32 kg. With the rise in living standards, the buying capacity for clothes, houses, furniture, automobiles and household items has increased, adding to the polymer consumption demand in India

Odisha has immense potential for the growth of the plastics and textiles sectors with convenient access to all the primary raw material needed. The region also has the necessary infrastructure, including ports, railway connectivity and road networks, that will facilitate the speedy development of the two sectors.

Projecting Odisha as a sound investment destination, Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, speaking at a recent investment conclave, said, "Odisha has immense potential for the growth of the plastics and textiles sectors with convenient access to all the primary raw material needed. Odisha presents a whole lot of possibilities and opportunities in the textiles and plastics industry with Indian Oil providing the raw materials."

The government of India has identified Paradip as one of the four PCPIRs (Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region) in the country. It is the most strategically located PCPIR approved by the Government of India. With IndianOil as the anchor tenant, it is being developed to provide an ecosystem for attracting and promoting exclusive investments in petroleum, chemicals, petrochemicals and allied sectors.

Thus, the above measures are expected to significantly boost the Indian economy as well as create huge employment opportunities in eastern India.

(PRA)

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