IndianOil pipeline starts, landing a blow on Haldia port
Mumbai   02-Jan-2009
The Haldia port is expected to lose 4-6 million tonne of crude cargo in the immediate future following the commissioning of IndianOil Paradip-Haldia pipeline. The Rs 14,200-crore pipeline will carry crude to IndianOil's Haldia refinery through single point mooring system. This helps to transfer crude oil from offshore vessels to onshore facilities. "Earlier, we used to carry crude to Haldia refinery through small tankers. But after installation of single point mooring system at Paradip this week, oil will be transferred by bigger vessels," an IndianOil official said. The pipeline will impact the Haldia port significantly as the IndianOil cargo provides for a big chunk the port's business. Till November 2008, the Haldia port, which is managed by the Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT), had carried IB million tonne of liquid cargo (petroleum, oil and lubricants). Of this, 11-12 million tonne comprised crude and rest was aviation turbine fuel, superior kerosene, diesel etc. Of the 12 million tonne of crude, 6 mt was accounted for by IndianOil's Haldia refinery, 5 mt by its Barauni refinery and 2 mt by Bongaigaon Refinery & Petrochemicals. Now, KoPT sources said, only the Bongaigaon crude cargo load will stay with the Haldia Dock System (HDS). They added that the immediate loss will be about 4-6 mt of IndianOil's crude, which will be diverted to the new pipeline. But, the pipeline will lead to significant gains for IndianOil. "This will save the cost of transportation of crude to our Haldia and Barauni refineries," the IndianOil official said. According to primary estimates, the Haldia refinery will save around Rs 4500 crore from the new arrangement. With the commissioning of Paradip-Haldia pipeline, total pipeline network of IndianOil has touched 10,000 km. The oil major is planning to add another 4,000 km pipeline during 2007-12. Due to the shallow draft at the HDS, ships weighing only up to 35,000 tonnes can enter the Haldia port. But, with the commissioning of the new pipeline, IndianOil can bring in ships weighing up to 1.5 lakh tonne at Paradip, said sources. The 330 km Paradip-Haldia pipeline will carry 10 million tonne of crude oil. Together with KoPT, HDS ranks the third highest among Indian ports in terms of cargo handling. But KoPT's targeted cargo volume for the end of the current fiscal is a slight increase to 58 million tonne, up from last fiscal's 57.3 million tonne, on account of lack of adequate dredging, a bane for Indian ports. IndianOil is the largest petroleum company in India by sales. Besides two refining subsidiaries, Chennai Petroleum Corp Ltd and Bongaigaon Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd, IndianOil also has operations in Sri Lanka, Mauritius, and United Arab Emirates.