File picture of the Indian Oil Corporation Limited plant in Paradip

Paradip, Nov. 23: Paradip oil refinery project is ready to be commissioned on March 2015 with an escalated cost of Rs 34,555 crore. The commissioning, along with further investments in petrochemical projects, has rekindled the hopes of both direct and indirect employment for the people of the state.

“The Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) project and various other ancillary petrochemical ones that are lined up for establishment will usher in a new development chapter in the history of the state. It will lead to massive employment opportunities for the people. The IOCL has also resolved to engage the local people and job-seekers from various parts of the state,” said executive director of Paradip oil refinery project Ramjee Ram.

Union minister of state for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan has laid the foundation stone for the Rs 3,150-crore polypropylene unit close to the oil refinery complex. The Indian Oil is also planning to set up an ethylene derivative plant worth Rs 4,000 crore.

The oil refinery complex would become a major petrochemical hub. Other units, outside the refinery, would act as catalysts in the socio-economic development of the state, Ram said.

“The IOCL has resolved to lay emphasis on generating employment avenues for the affected landowners and the people living in the peripheral area. While engaging people in the project, the company, being a public sector undertaking, is being strictly guided by Rehabilitation and Relief Policy that was made by the central government and approved by Rehabilitation Advisory Committee on December 2, 2002,” said Ram.

Though the lack of skilled manpower has posed hindrances, the construction of the refinery is fast progressing and it is certainly going to be commissioned by March next year.

Nearly 98% of the construction has been completed. Establishment of the atmospheric vacuum distillation unit, the central component of the refinery, has been done. It is now being put under trial run, said an IOCL official.

The refinery would hold the capacity of 15 million tonnes per annum. It is valued at an estimated cost of Rs 34,555 crore of which around Rs 30,000 crore has already been used up. The company engineers are working round the clock to meet the deadline, said another official.

Besides the shortage of manpower, labour unrest, recurring untoward activities by trade unions and other groups had led to the delay in the commissioning of the project. Delay in completion of the 366MW power plant had also affected its progress. Construction of water pipelines from Mahanadi River had also been delayed. Earlier this year, it was completed. Government clearance delays, court cases and transfer of land in Paradip had further interrupted the project work. Besides, construction of underground product pipelines from the south jetty at the port to the refinery site had also hindered the project. Nature had also been uncooperative, as heavy rain and cyclones also affected the project.