GAIL (India) is planning investing approximately ₹50,000 crore in establishing a 1.5 million tons per annum ethane cracking unit in Sehore, Madhya Pradesh. The significant investment aims to cater to the increasing domestic demand for petrochemicals, marking one of the largest proposed capital expenditures by the gas utility.

Source: ChemIndiGest

Currently in the planning phase, the facility is anticipated to substantially augment GAIL’s existing 810 KTA petrochemicals facility in Pata, near Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The timeline for its completion is estimated to be within the next five to six years, with Engineers India being entrusted with the responsibility to work out a detailed feasibility report for the project.

GAIL plans to import ethane as a primary petrochemical feedstock and transport it through its extensive pipeline network to various demand centres across India. In March, the company entered a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MoU) with ONGC and Shell Energy India, aimed at exploring import opportunities.

As reported by Projects Today, in line with India’s burgeoning petrochemical consumption, which is projected to nearly triple to 80 million tons by 2040, Indian refiners are intensifying their efforts to enhance petrochemical production capacity. Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) is also investing close to $6 billion to establish an ethane-fed cracker at its Bina refinery in Madhya Pradesh.