BPCL to foray into petrochemicals with propylene processing plant

Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) is planning to enter the petrochemicals sector to boost its refining margins, according to a Reuters news. The company plans to use 3,00,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) out of the 5,00,000 tpa of propylene that BPCL produces in Kochi for the new petrochemical plant, which is being built with an investment of $850 million. The remaining 200,000 tpa of propelyne will be utilised by the company for other projects.
 
BPCL is aiming to double its refining margins once it completes the expansion and upgrade of its Kochi refinery in Kerala to process high sulphur crudes by 2016, said the Reuters report.
The state-owned refiner is in process of increasing the capacity of the Kochi refinery from 190,000 barrels per day (bpd) to to 310,000 bpd by May 2016.
 
FOR COMPLETE REPORT READ: BPCL aims to double refining margins with refinery expansion