New Delhi, May 09: Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd has rejected Reliance Industries Ltd's request for a capacity in its proposed Rs 1367 crore Mundra-Delhi pipeline as the private sector refiner failed to give take or pay commitment. HPCL has proposed to lay a 1008-km long petroleum product pipeline from Mundra to Delhi on common carrier principle where 25 percent of the capacity is leased out to other firms. "RIL has not agreed to give the take of pay agreement for 25 years for the 2.5 million tonnes capacity they want in the pipeline," HPCL last month wrote to the petroleum ministry. The Ambani-owned firm was the only refiner to submit bid for taking capacity in the 5.8 million tonnes per annum capacity pipeline originating at Mundra in Gujarat. But its proposal to inject product from its Jamnagar Refinery in Gujarat into the pipeline at Palanpur was found to be techno-commercially not feasible. Further, "RIL has not given any requirement of kerosene or its equivalent product which is essential for respective product cycles of interest parties. This would result in non materialisation of their projected 0.5 million tonnes per annum petrol output out of their total capacity requirement of 2.5 million tonnes per annum, which should be understood to be at their risk and cost only," HPCL wrote.
Bureau Report