MP govt for SME cluster near Bina refinery

The Bina refinery in Madhya Pradesh will be commissioned in 2010. The state government is looking for help to make use of the right-to-first refusal that it has for the use of Naptha, a by-product of the refinery. After receiving a lukewarm response from fertiliser and power companies to set up a petrochemical complex, the government plans to set up an SME-based petrochemical complex near the refinery.

Industry chambers like the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) have been invited to put forward their ideas.

“The department of energy floated tenders to receive interests from various power companies to sell 2.40 million tonnes of naphtha that the refinery will produce each year. The Madhya Pradesh Trade and Investment Facilitation Commission (TRIFAC) has also written letters to as many as 24 fertiliser companies, but only one fertiliser company approached us and few power companies evinced interest to set up naphtha-based power plants. Now, the government wants to develop an SME-based petro complex at the refinery,” a well-placed government said.

The official added the state government will soon invite ideas from various business chambers so that an SME-based petro complex can be set up . However, low aromatic naphtha, which will be produced by the plant, is in abundance in the country and no fertiliser and power company wants to enter into any deal.

Essar Power, Kedia Power, Moser Baer, GVL Power, DB Power, STI Power, Alpine Power etc. evinced interest in obtaining naphtha from the state government. Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that the state government signed with Bharat Oman Refinery Limited (BORL), the implementing authority for the refinery, BORL has to be told about the state government’s plans before March 31, 2009.