IOC to increase R&D spend to Rs 200 cr

Public sector oil major Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) will double its spend on research and development (R&D) to Rs 200 crore from the next financial year to help the company explore new opportunities and technologies.

Speaking on the sidelines of the 15th Refinery Technology Meet, which began here on Thursday, IOC chairman S Behuria said it was important for the oil companies to focus on R&D and knowledge skills. Till last year, IOC was spending Rs 100 crore on R&D.

“The corporation is trying to develop fuel refining technology, bio-fuel for non-conventional energy, polymer, and was focusing on quality,” he said.

KK Acharya, managing director, Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd, said one of the major challenges for the R&D development was testing. “None of the companies is coming forward to test the findings,” he said.

The three-day meet is being organised by the Centre for High Technology in association with CPCL.

Refining industry faces capacity shortage

Mahabalipuram: The refining capacity in the Asia Pacific region was 25 million barrels per day in 2008, a shortfall of four million barrel per day, mainly on account of inadequate capacity to refine crude.

“Additional capacity creation requires heavy investment. This is where the problem lies as the much-needed investment in the oil refinery industry is not attaining its required levels because of the uncertainty of the investment returns,” said S Behuria, chairman, Indian Oil Corporation.

Speaking on the sidelines of the 15th Refinery Technology Meet, he said India had to strive hard to find more oil and gas from untapped reserves.

“The oil reserves exist far away from the people who are actually using it. Therefore, the energy use, especially for import dependent nations, has to be meticulously planned and risk factored in,” he said.

A reserve of 1,980 trillion cubic ft of natural gas in the form of gas hydrates was below the seabed in the Bay of Bengal. However, to tap this, an advanced cutting edge technology was required, he said.