KOCHI: The Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Kifra) has obtained in-principle approval from the State Government for setting up a petrochemical park in Kochi.
The petrochemical park will be set up on 600 acres of land to be procured from FACT at Ambalamugal. The estimated cost of the project is Rs 1,864 crore, including the cost of land and internal infrastructure.
“The project assumes significance in view of the proposed expansion of BPCL, proximity to the port and availability of natural gas infrastructure,” said Kinfra managing director M Beena.
Moreover, the fertiliser and chemical factories in Kochi, LNG Terminal, the proposed gas pipeline network, Bulk Terminal, Kochi Refinery, and the International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT) will be complimentary to the petrochemical park.
Currently, petrochemicals account for 30 per cent of the country’s US dollars 120-billion chemical industry, which is likely to grow about 11 per cent in the coming years to hit US$250 billion by 2020.
Currently, BPCL-Kochi Refinery is in the process of expanding capacity from 9.5 MMTPA to 15.5 MMTPA. When completed, it will facilitate production of 5 lakh TPA of propylene, which is in addition to fuels like LPG, HSD, kerosene, ATF, coke and bitumen.
The infrastructure facilities required for setting up the petrochemical park include internal roads, drains, water treatment plants, internal water supply system, internal electrification, common sewage treatment plants, common effluent treatment plants, rain water harvesting system and solid waste management system.