BHUBANESWAR: The State Government on Monday approved five projects with investment proposal of Rs 2,04,069 crore at the meeting of the 20th High-Level Clearance Authority (HLCA) presided by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
This is the highest ever investment approved by the HLCA so far. The proposals will create employment opportunities for 27,645 people. The proposals, approved in the meeting held at the Kharavela Bhavan conference hall, belong to the focus sectors identified by the Government.
In a major breakthrough, the HLCA gave its nod to two giants in the petrochemical sector to set up their projects in Odisha. The first one was by Haldia Petrochemicals Limited (HPL) to set up a hydrocarbon processing complex comprising light crude oil refinery, aromatics complex and ethylene cracker complex near the proposed Subarnarekha port in Balasore district with an investment of Rs 78,225 crore. The project will create job opportunities for around 10,000 people.
The second proposal was by petrochemical major Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) to expand its existing refinery unit from 15 mmtpa to 25 mmtpa and set up a petrochemical complex comprising a dual feed cracker, naptha cracker and petcoke gasification plant at Paradip with a total investment of Rs 1,00,300 crore.
The project will create employment opportunities for around 12,595 people. The project will ensure the availability of building block feedback to ancillary and downstream units in the chemical and petrochemical sectors.
Another proposal by IOCL to set up a 1.2 mmtpa capacity PX-PTA (Purified Terephthalic Acid Complex) with an investment of Rs 9136 crore in its existing Paradip refinery, employing around 3200 people, was also approved at the meeting. Official sources said these projects would not only make the State a petrochemical hub, propelling the growth of downstream petrochemical units, but would make Odisha, the Energy Gateway of the East. Both the projects being port-based would also facilitate the export and import trading.
In the metal downstream sector, the HLCA approved the proposal of Jindal (India) Limited to set up a cold rolling complex of 0.5 mmtpa and steel processing plant at Kalinga Nagar Industrial Complex in Jajpur district with a total investment of Rs 1,676 crore and employment opportunities for about 1,300 people.
A proposal by Talcher Fertiliser Limited to set up a coal-based urea fertiliser complex of 1.99 mmtpa capacity at Talcher with an investment of Rs 14,732 crore was approved. The proposed project would create employment opportunities for 550 people. Principal Secretary in the industries Sanjeev Chopra outlined the project proposals for consideration of the HLCA.