Kolkata, 5th February, 2021

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will be dedicating to the nation key infrastructure projects in the oil and gas sector and road sector in West Bengal in a public function to be held in Haldia on 7th Feb 2021. Governor of West Bengal Shri JagdeepDhankar, West Bengal Chief Minister Ms. Mamata Banerjee and other dignitaries are also invited to grace the event.

Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone of the second catalytic dewaxing unit at the Haldia Refinery of Indian Oil Corporation. This unit, with a capacity of 270 TMTPA is estimated to cost Rs.1019 crores and will produce advanced Group III Lubes Oil Base Stock (LOBS), which will be first of its kind installation in India. Once commissioned, this will lead to import-substitution in the spirit of Atmanirbhar Bharat. Currently around 70% of LOBS requirement is being met through imports. With the commissioning of CIDW at Haldia Refinery, LOBS Production of the country will be enhanced and LOBS import dependency will reduce by around 8%. This project is expected to result in saving of foreign exchange to the tune of 185 million USD. Nearly 2200 direct and indirect employment will be generated from this project.

Sri Modi will be dedicating a 347 km long Dobhi-Durgapur natural gas pipeline. This pipeline is a part of ambitious Pradhan MantriUrja Ganga project. Dobhi-Durgapur pipeline has been built at a cost of Rs. 2433 crore by GAIL. During the project stage, it generated 15 lakhs man-days of employment. The Dobhi-Durgapur pipeline project will revive HURL Sindri in Jharkhand fertilizer plant, supply gas to Matix fertilizer plant at Durgapur and will supply gas to industrial, commercial and automobile sectors and city gas distribution across all major towns in these states, including cities of Purulia, Asansol and Durgapur of West Bengal. Within 3 years the project is completed.

Another important project to be dedicated by Prime Minister is the LPG import terminal built by Bharat Petroleum Corporation. The LPG import terminal will cater to the growing demand of LPG in eastern region will help realize the vision of PM Modi to provide clean cooking LPG to every household. BPCL has constructed this LPG import terminal at Haldia with an investment of Rs. 1100 Crore. The terminal will meet the requirement of LPG in West Bengal and other states in eastern and north-eastern India. It is noteworthy that after launch of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojna (PMUY), LPG penetration has witnessed a phenomenal growth in the entire country. West Bengal, along with other Eastern States has also witnessed similar growth in LPG consumption. LPG penetration in West Bengal, which was only 41.4% in April 2014 has increased to 99.5% as on date. 1000 persons will get job from this project.

The Prime Minister will also dedicate 4 Lane ROB-cum-Flyover at Ranichak, Haldia on NH 41. Haldia dock complex is the main gateway for import and export of cargo destined/originating from Eastern and North-Eastern part of country as well as land-locked countries like Nepal and Bhutan. This has been built at the cost of Rs 190 crore. The commissioning of this flyover will result in uninterrupted to and fro traffic from Kolaghat to Haldia Dock Complex and other surrounding areas. There will be a substantial saving in travel time and operating cost of heavy vehicles plying in and out of the port.

These projects to be inaugurated are in line with Prime Minister Sri Modi’s vision of Purvodaya of driving growth of eastern India. West Bengal is going to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Purvodaya vision which is being implemented in mission mode to bring the state, and eastern India overall, at par with other developed states of the country. These projects will create economic opportunities for the youth of West Bengal through direct and indirect employment generation.

A total of approx. Rs. 7692 crore is being invested in West Bengal by the oil PSUs during the period 2019-20 to 2023-24, leading to all-round industrial development and employment generation in the State , besides meeting the energy needs of the growing economy in the State.

In 2019-20, IndianOil has spent over Rs. 18.85 crore on various welfare projects covering drinking water, sanitation, healthcare, skill development and education, etc. in the state. HPCL spent Rs. 105.6 lakh in 2019-20. During the same period BPCL spent 4.0 crore during 2019-20. Another oil PSU , GAIL spent total of 25.64 crore as in 2020-21.

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