Indian Oil Corp. to set up greenfield refinery in Nagai.

Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) is planning to set up a 9 million metrictonnes per annum (mmtpa) greenfield refinery at Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu to expand its refining capacity and help meet the rising energy demand in India.

The expansion will be carried out by its subsidiary Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL).

“Besides the West Coast refinery, we are looking at a greenfield refinery expansion on India’s East Coast in Nagapattinam, Tamil Nadu. The financials of the refinery project need to be worked out and approved by the board of CPCL,” IOCL chairman Sanjiv Singh told The Hindu. In a bid to diversify into non-fossil fuel, IOCL is also planning to set up an aluminium anode battery plant in Chennai.

“We are looking at manufacturing various batteries, storage, [and] improving conventional battery. We are talking something beyond lithium, as lithium batteries are not the best answer, for, India doesn’t have lithium,” Mr. Singh said.

Gurmeet Singh, IOCL’s Director — Marketing, said, “We are in an advanced stage of development of aluminium anode-based batteries, as aluminium is available in India in abundance. We will manufacture these batteries in Chennai. These will be self charging and much cheaper and lighter than the conventional lithium ion battery.”

“The battery plant is expected to come up in joint venture with a foreign player. The ideal size of the unit may be one giga watt,” said S.S.V. Ramakumar, Director — R&D at IOC.

THE HINDU