RIL to partly shut Jamnagar refinery for maintenance work

Reliance Industries (RIL) may shut part of its Jamnagar refinery in April or May and is likely to use the large workforce available at its new unit site for the annual maintenance job.

"The maintenance shutdown (of 660,000 barrels per day unit) was planned in April 2009 and the company is more or less sticking to its plans," an industry source said.

Previously, it was said that Reliance may advance the annual turnaround to use the workforce already at Reliance Petroleum that recently commissioned an SEZ refinery adjacent to this plant site.

But with RPL likely to be fully commissioned only in April, the turnaround would be as per the schedule, the source said adding the shutdown is likely to last 2-4 weeks.

However, a company spokesperson declined to comment.

It takes 5,000 to 10,000 workers for the turnaround and since labourers working on the RPL project would be available till March, Reliance is thinking of using them for the turnaround of the existing unit at Jamnagar, he said.

The company will shut a 3,25,000 bpd crude distillation unit (CDU), a 1,00,000 bpd diesel hydro desulphurisation unit and a vacuum gas oil hydrotreater in the first phase. The second CDU of similar capacity and associated units would be shut in the second phase of maintenance that may take place in May/June.