UAE, Saudi firms to bring in largest FDI in oil refining

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 25

With Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) joining Saudi Aramco as a strategic partner in the Rs 3-lakh crore Ratnagiri mega refinery project in Maharashtra, it will be the single largest overseas investment in the Indian oil refining sector.

Saudi Aramco, which had earlier joined the project in April, on Monday signed a pact with ADNOC to jointly develop and build an integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex at Ratnagiri in Maharashtra. The project will be implemented by Ratnagiri Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd (RRPCL).

RRPCL, which is promoted by a consortium of India PSUs consisting of IOCL, BPCL and HPCL, will now have Saudi Aramco and ADNOC as overseas strategic partners. The project will be set up as a 50:50 joint partnership between the consortium from India and Saudi Aramco and ADNOC.

Saudi Aramco president and CEO Amin H Nasser said between the two parties, they would hold 50 per cent and the exact stakeholding was being discussed.

Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said this would be the largest FDI in the refining sector but more than the investment, the pact signifies the strategic partnership between India, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Pradhan said the past four years have seen the three countries coming closer than ever before owing to the commitment and vision shown by the leadership. He said Prime Minister Modi and the leaders of Saudi Arabia and the UAE have met multiple times to strengthen the political, economic and strategic relations and people-to-people contacts.

He said for the first time, five companies, including two oil majors, are coming together to set up an integrated refinery project.