Union Minister for Petroleum, Oil and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday flagged off a consignment of critical equipment for Indian Oil’s new MEG plant in Odisha from Gujarat’s Hazira port. Indian Oil Corporation has invested in establishing a Mono Ethylene Glycol (MEG) plant in Paradip, a leading port in Odisha with prominent connectivity to East Asian markets. According to a note from the Petroleum Ministry, the over-dimensioned consignment (ODC) movement of the flagged off equipment included an Ethylene Oxide reactor, a washtower and a deethyleniser.
Pradhan said that upon the delivery of the consignment, the Paradip MEG plant will take a “significant stride”, helping boost the state economy as well as the development of the neighbouring region. MEG is a key constituent of several end products, such as Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET), Polyester Staple Fibre (PSF), Polyester Filament Yarn (PFY), and the likes.
“Indian Oil’s Ethylene Glycol project at Paradip, which includes a 180 KTA Ethylene Recovery Unit (ERU) and a 357 KTA Ethylene Glycol unit (EGU), is expected to produce 332 KTA MEG. This project is expected to be commissioned in October 2021 at Indian Oil’s Paradip Refinery at an investment of Rs 5,654 crores,” a statement read.
The Minister also highlighted how the commissioning of the Paradip project would be another feather in Prime Minister Modi’s vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’. He mentioned that the launch of regular operations at this plant could pave the way for the downstream textile industry to grow and evolve. The manufacturing project will be executed by global conglomerate Larsen and Toubro (L&T).