Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) on June 25, 2018, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly develop and build an integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex at Ratnagiri, Maharashtra. 

The MoU was signed by Amin H. Nasser, Saudi Aramco President and CEO and Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State & ADNOC Group CEO.

Significance 

• 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 & ADNOC as overseas strategic partners. 

• The project will be set up as a 50:50 joint partnership (50:50) between the consortium from India and Saudi Aramco and ADNOC. 

• This will be the single largest overseas investment in the Indian refining sector.

• The strategic partnership brings together crude supply, resources, technologies, experience and expertise of these multiple oil companies with an established commercial presence around the world.

Ratnagiri Refinery project

• The mega refinery will be capable of processing 1.2 million barrels of crude oil per day (60 million metric tonnes per annum). 

• It will produce a range of refined petroleum products, including petrol and diesel meeting BS-VI fuel efficiency norms. 

• It will provide feedstock for the integrated petrochemicals complex, which will have the capacity of producing around 18 million tonnes per annum of petrochemical products.

• Once developed, RRPCL will rank among the world’s largest refining & petrochemicals projects and will be designed to meet India’s fast-growing fuels and petrochemicals demand. 

• The project cost is estimated at around Rs 3 lakh crore (USD 44 billion).